


Secrets in Time

by Pokeluv101



Category: Servamp (Anime & Manga)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, M/M, Mystery
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-11-03
Updated: 2018-11-30
Packaged: 2019-01-28 23:49:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 15
Words: 46,208
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12618340
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Pokeluv101/pseuds/Pokeluv101
Summary: Mahiru refused to accept that his friend killed himself and went to the Alicein Household to discover the truth. He didn't know what to expect from the residents or who to trust. But with Kuro, he discovers the secrets hidden within the mansion.





	1. Chapter 1

* * *

"Help! Someone help me!" Kuro followed the voice and was shocked to find a man hanging from the wall. At first, Kuro could only stare up at him in disbelief. He didn't recognize the man so he knew he didn't work for Alicein family. Kuro was employed to the family as a guard and often patrol around the gate surrounding the mansion.

But the man clinging to the wall was different from the other thieves he seen throughout his employment. Kuro sarcastically called up to the man. "Hey, do you know that you're trespassing?"

"Oh, thank God!" Mahiru looked down and saw a man standing beneath him. It was raining heavily and he didn't know how much longer he could hold onto the edge of the wall. He rushed to explain his situation.

"I'm not trespassing but I can understand why you thought that. My name's Mahiru Shirota and I'm here for the appraiser position. I have an interview at five but the gatekeeper wouldn't let me in. I didn't want to be late so I tried to climb over the wall. I saw tree branches reaching over the wall so I thought there was a tree on the other side that I could use to climb down. Thinking simply, this should've worked."

"What's simple about that plan?" Kuro sighed to himself. The tree was too far for Mahiru to reach and the branches near the wall were too thin to support a man's weight. "Just wait there and I'll get a ladder to help you down. Don't go anywhere."

"Where do you think I'll go?" Mahiru snapped back at him and Kuro chuckled to himself. "Please be quick! I don't know how much long I can hang on."

No sooner did he finished the sentence, did the rain became more powerful and the water loosened his grip on the wall. Mahiru desperately tried to catch onto something to save himself but his hand slipped and he fell. Kuro rushed to save him and reached out his arms to catch him. He fell into Kuro's arms and his weight sent them both crashing to the ground.

They were both in shock so it took them a moment to recover from the fall. Mahiru opened his eyes hesitantly and he found himself sprawled across the man. With a flurry of apologies, Mahiru climbed off the man. He could feel heat creep up his cheeks but the man didn't reveal any emotion on his face. "I'm sorry! But thank you for saving me."

"Can't deal. Hugh's going to yell at me for getting dirty." Kuro sighed and looked down at the mud coating his pants. "But are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. I probably look worst than I feel." He gave him a reassuring smile and took the hand Kuro held out to him. Mahiru was certain that he looked like a wet dog because of the rain and wind. He took out a napkin from his pocket and held it out to Kuro. "You have some mud on your face. Let me get it for you."

He didn't wait for Kuro's reply before he wiped the dirt from Kuro's cheek. Mahiru had to stand on his toes to do so because Kuro was slightly taller than him. Kuro was surprised with the small gesture and stepped back. "You don't need to do that. I'll just go back to my room to clean up. Don't you have an interview to go to?"

Mahiru looked at his watch and was relieved when he saw the time. "I still have some time. Hopefully, I can clean up a little bit to make myself presentable. I really need this job."

"Unless you have a fairy godmother to clean you up, I don't think there's much you can do about this." His hair was soaked and Kuro gently brushed away Mahiru's hair from his eyes. He only meant it as a casual gesture but caught himself when his eyes locked with Mahiru's.

"I'll get one of the maids to get you a towel. Lily's in charge of things like hiring people so I'll tell him what happened. He's a good guy so he'll understand." Kuro took his hand back quickly. He walked towards the entrance of the mansion and gestured for Mahiru to follow him.

"Thank you, Kuro!" Mahiru bowed to him quickly before following him. They walked side by side and Kuro watched him carefully. Kuro decided to trust Mahiru because his story was too outlandish to be a lie and Lily told him that he had an interview today but he still had to be cautious. The Alicein were a powerful family and others had tried to rob them in the past.

Kuro walked into the mansion and nodded to DoDo, silently telling him that Mahiru could be trusted. "He's here for an interview with Lily but he got caught in the rain. Can you get him a towel and something to change into? I'm going to my room to change so just wait in that room, Mahiru."

"Kuro, look at this meiping vase! This pattern is reminiscent of the Song dynasty." Mahiru looked over his shoulder to Kuro, his eyes bright with fascination. Kuro remembered Mahiru mentioning that he was applying for a position as an appraiser. "It's beautiful but it's a shame that it's not authentic. There are small hairs on the etching so this was probably made by a machine."

"You have a good eye." Mahiru jumped slightly when a voice spoke next to him. The tall man that stood next to him now appeared so quietly that it shocked Mahiru. But he gave Mahiru a kind smile. "My name's Lily. We spoke over the phone and I'm glad you're interested in the job. I know it's rather short notice."

"It's no trouble at all. I'm just excited for the opportunity to be able appraise the Alicein's legendary heirlooms." Mahiru beamed. The Alicein family had many heirlooms that they were planning to donate to a museum and they wanted someone to appraise them before they were sent to a museum. But Mahiru wasn't interest in the job or the heirlooms.

Mahiru only wanted to know the truth about what happened to his friend, Licht. Earlier that week, his friend took a job with the Alicein family as a pianist. From their conversations, he thought that Licht was happy so it was a complete shock when he was told that Licht had died. According to the police, Licht had jumped off a cliff located near the Alicein's mansion.

But anyone who knew Licht would know that he would never kill himself. Mahiru tried many times to convince the police to reopen the case but refused to do so no matter how many times he asked them. He knew that if he wanted to find the truth, he would have to look for it himself. When he saw the job posting, Mahiru knew it was his opportunity.

Someone in this mansion killed his friend and Mahiru was determined to discover who.

* * *

"You want me to watch over him?" Kuro narrowed his eyes at Lily's request.

"Yes. It's just a safety precaution to prevent the heirlooms from being stolen. Mahiru seems like a very trustworthy and genuine person but it doesn't hurt to be safe. You'll be pardon from your duties as a guard and all you have to do is stay by Mahiru's side. It's an easy job, Kuro. Please do this for me, Kuro! There's no one I trust more than you."

"Fine." Kuro sighed. Lily was his brother and worked with the Alicein family much longer than he had. The Alicein were like a second family to Lily and Kuro knew how important they were to him. So, Kuro couldn't refuse his brother.

"Thank you, Kuro!" Lily hugged his brother. "He'll be staying in your room to make the job easier for you."

"Troublesome, I'm already regretting my decision." Almost all of the employees lived in the Alicein's mansion and had their own rooms. Most had no where to go and the Alicein provided them a home. "Can't he just have a room next to mine or something? Sharing a room isn't going to make my job easier."

"I already had one of the maids move another bed into the room and Mahiru is already his things in so there's no room for argument. Maybe you'll actually become close with him." Lily suggested.

"I doubt it." Kuro had difficulty allowing himself to become close with people and could be distant so Lily hoped that interacting with people would help him. "That guy tried to climb a wall in a storm. Only a crazy person would do something like that. I wouldn't do that no matter how much this job is paying."

"Keep an open mind, Kuro. This should be an easy job for you. Just make sure that he doesn't steal or damage anything. If he does anything strange, please tell the master."

"Whatever," Kuro sighed. "I'll keep an eye on him."

After they finished, Kuro walked back to his room. More specifically, he dragged his feet to his room. He liked his privacy and didn't appreciate having to share his room with a stranger. Kuro hoped that Mahiru would keep to himself while they were staying together. But his hopes were dashed when he opened the door to his room.

Kuro barely recognized his room. His room was now clean and organized. The curtains were drawn and light flooded his room. In the center of his room was Mahiru, sweeping. His hair was dry now and he had changed into fresh clothes.

Mahiru looked up when he heard the door open. He couldn't stop himself from throwing a glare at Kuro. At first, he was grateful that his roommate was Kuro because he seemed to be a kind and dependable person. But seeing his mess of a room, Mahiru questioned his judgement.

"Lily told me you got the job." Kuro said awkwardly and walked past him to his bed. "Congrats."

"Thanks, but I want to talk to you. We're going to be roommates so let's set some ground rules. You may be comfortable living in a mess but I'm not. I cleaned our room for you this time but I won't do it next time. I'm an appraiser, not a maid. You're a grown man so you can clean up after yourself. You even left the TV on! You're a guest in this house so it's not polite to waste electricity like that."

Mahiru chastised but he didn't know if Kuro was listening to him since he only laid in his bed. "Can't deal."

"Look Kuro, we're going to be roommates so we should get along." Mahiru said and Kuro finally turned to face him. While Mahiru was angry when he saw the mess that was Kuro's room, he didn't want to antagonize the man. He wanted to have a few allies he could turn to when he was looking for Licht's killer.

"Fine," Kuro thought that it would be easier to give into Mahiru to argue with him. So, he held out his hand to Mahiru and he shook it with a smile.

* * *

The storm knocking on a window woke Licht but his vision was still blurry when he opened his eyes. The bed he was in was warm but felt foreign to him so Licht pushed himself into a sitting position. He looked around the small room and winced when he tried to remember how he came to the room. Whenever he tried to recall a memory, his head felt like it was splitting in two.

"You're finally up!" Licht realized that there was someone else in the room. The blond man had been sleeping on the desk when he heard Licht wake. He looked relieve but Licht didn't recognize him and narrowed his eyes. The man saw his expression and held up his hands in surrender. "Now, is that any way to treat the man that saved you?"

"Saved me?" Licht repeated but he couldn't focus on a memory when his head was still spinning.

"You just woke up so everything must be a little fuzzy. You're just lucky that I was exploring the caves at the base of the cliff. I was shocked to see an angel falling from the sky and I swam out to save you. If you want to thank me, my name's Hyde."

The man still looked confused and Hyde thought back to the night he saw Licht fall off the cliff. He had been when he heard a struggle from the top of the cliff. But when he ran out of the cave, the only thing he saw was Licht falling. He was already injured before he fell into the water and Hyde could only imagine what happened on that cliff.

But someone wanted the man dead so Hyde hesitated to take him to the hospital. He decided to take him home and treated his wounds. Licht developed a fever and Hyde was glad that he was awake now. But the man looked slightly lost as he stared down at his hands. "I fell? I don't remember anything…"

"I told you, everything's probably a little fuzzy but it'll clear up in no time." Hyde patted his shoulder. "I'll get you something to eat and an aspirin. You willing to give me your name in trade?"

"… It's Licht."

"That's a nice name." Hyde started to stand but stopped when Licht grabbed his arm.

"My name's Licht but that's all I remember." His eyes looked genuinely lost and panicked. "I don't remember falling off a cliff or anything else. Who am I?"


	2. Chapter 2

"Who wakes up this early in the morning?" Kuro groaned when he looked at the time. It was only six in the morning yet Mahiru was already awake. He threw open the window to let the morning air into their room. The sun hadn't risen yet so it wasn't too bright but Kuro still buried himself beneath his blanket. "Close the window, Mahiru! People are trying to sleep."

"Oh, sorry Kuro. I live by myself so I'm not used to having a roommate. I'll try to be quieter next time." Mahiru said apologetically and Kuro sat up. He knew that it would be pointless to go back to sleep because he had to watch over Mahiru while he worked. As he sat up, he noticed that Mahiru had a rather sad expression as he looked out the window.

"Feeling a little homesick?" Kuro's question brought Mahiru out of his thoughts and he turned away from the window. Mahiru lived in Tokyo but moved to the coast so he could work for the Alicein household. He didn't know why Mahiru was willing to move so far when the appraiser job was temporary and couldn't last for more than a couple months.

"It's not that." Mahiru stared out the window to the cliff. It was a scenic sight but Mahiru couldn't help but think of Licht. Grief and sorrow filled him but the pain only made Mahiru more determined to discover who killed him. Someone had to be responsible for his death and Mahiru refused to believe that Licht would kill himself.

Mahiru pushed himself away from the window and closed it. He tried to force a smile onto his face before he turned to face Kuro. "I was just worried about my plants back home. I asked my uncle to water them but he works a lot. It's really nothing so don't worry about it. I'm heading down for breakfast so you can sleep in a little more."

"I'm already up so I might as well show you the way to the kitchen." Kuro went to the closet and Mahiru stepped outside so he could have his privacy. He closed the door behind him and leaned against the door. Mahiru sighed to himself and tried to think of how he could find the person that killed Licht. He wasn't a detective so he didn't know where to begin.

The door opened behind him and Mahiru began to fall backwards. He fell against something warm and an arm wrapped around his waist to steady him. Mahiru looked up to see Kuro staring down at him with an exasperated expression. "Are you going to make a habit of falling into my arms?"

"That was just an accident!" Mahiru blushed and pulled away from Kuro quickly. He tried to keep himself from appearing flustered but couldn't meet Kuro's eyes. In contrast, Kuro merely walked down the hall with a bored expression. Mahiru followed him and Kuro slowed his steps so they could walk together.

"It's still a little early, so the chefs haven't started breakfast yet so we'll have to eat cereal or something. Servants usually eat in the kitchen since it's pretty big and there's a table there." Kuro explained as they walked. "We don't usually start our day until seven. You don't have anything important to do today so I don't know why you would wake up so early."

"I'm an early bird, I guess." Mahiru shrugged. When they reached a door, Kuro held it open for him. He was shocked by the size of the kitchen since it seemed to be for a restaurant rather than a home. Kuro sat at the table and watched Mahiru. He looked a little hesitant when he opened the large refrigerator so Kuro reassured him.

"You can eat whatever you want. The Alicein are lax about these kinds of things and they're nice. If you're going to make something to eat, can you make me some tea too?" Mahiru sighed at his question and intended to tell him to make it himself.

But when he turned back, he saw Kuro resting his head on the table with his eyes closed. He looked tired but offered to help him to the kitchen so making tea was the least he could do. Mahiru searched the cupboards for everything he needed to make them breakfast. "Kuro, would you like an English or Japanese style breakfast?"

"I just asked for tea. You don't need to cook me anything. I'll just grab some toast or something." Kuro muttered as he listened to Mahiru cook. He kept his eyes closed and tried to drift off so he could have a few more blissful moments of sleep. Kuro was never a morning person but it seemed like Mahiru was. He hummed to himself as he cooked and soon the kitchen was filled was a pleasant smell.

"Here you go." Kuro looked up as Mahiru placed a plate of eggs and a cup of tea in front of him. Before he could argue, Mahiru said: "Eat it. You need to eat more than toast to function properly. Consider it my thanks for being so nice to me."

"I haven't had a home cooked meal in a while." Kuro commented as Mahiru sat next to him and began to eat as well. Usually, he would wake up late and had to rush through his morning routine and have a meager breakfast. "It tastes good."

Mahiru smiled at his words. He lived alone for most of his life so he was skilled at cooking and cleaning. He usually ate alone so he found Kuro's company refreshing despite how quiet he was. The atmosphere was pleasant around them that Mahiru almost didn't want to ask Kuro about Licht. But he knew this was his best chance to learn more.

"Kuro, can you tell me more about the Alicein family and this house? I'm going to be working and living here so, thinking simply, I should learn about them. What kind of family is the Alicein? What are the other servants like?" Mahiru asked and Kuro shrugged nonchalantly.

"The Alicein is the kind of family you'll find in picture frames and they consider the servants a part of that family. We're all very close. Mikado is the master of the house and he has a son, Misono. But his wife died when a burglar tried to rob them so you might want to keep your stunt from last night between us."

"It must've been hard for him." Mahiru's voice was filled with sympathy.

"It occurred before I was hired but it seemed like everyone adjusted. The rules are pretty relaxed and you can do what you want as long as you get your work done. There is one rule you can't break though." Kuro placed his fork down and his voice became serious. "We're forbidden to enter the east wing."

"The east wing? What's there?" Kuro only answered him with a shrug. Honestly, Kuro didn't know what was in the east wing and he could only guess. The only thing he knew for certain was that the other servants whispered about it with an ominous secrecy. He asked Lily about it once but he only said that there were important documents there and were confidential. Kuro knew he was lying but didn't press for the truth.

"Just don't go there." Kuro advised. If Lily felt the need to lie about the east wing, Kuro knew that it was for an important reason. "Anyways, you don't need to worry about it since all the heirlooms are kept in the attic. I'll show you where it is after breakfast."

"I need to talk to Lily about the family ledger first. That ledger should have a list of the family's purchases that I can use to categorize and organize the heirlooms. Do you think Lily can have a room set aside for me to work in because I doubt the attic will have proper lighting?"

"I'll talk to him about it." Mahiru smiled as he thanked him and Kuro turned away for a moment. The soft smile surprised him since Mahiru looked so serious while they were speaking earlier. But Kuro had to admit that he liked this expression better than the others he saw before.

* * *

"Here's the ledger and you can use the private office in the library. Just be careful about locking the door after you leave." Lily handed Mahiru a thick tome and a key. The book was so thick that Mahiru had to hold it with both of his hands. "If you need any help carrying the heirlooms, ask Tetsu. He's the strongest servant we have and he's always happy to help."

"I think Kuro and I will be fine by ourselves for now. We're not planning to move them all down at once. I want to make a catalogue of everything first and that could take all day so we won't be going to the attic until tomorrow. May I work here in the library?" Mahiru walked to the nearest desk and set the ledger down. His eyes drifted to the piano in the corner and had to ask.

"Does anyone here play the piano? It would be nice to listen to music while I work." Mahiru tried to keep his voice casual. Licht told him that he would often play the piano in the library while the others worked. When Lily answered, he watched his expression carefully.

"… We had someone that played the piano but he's not with us right now."

"Did he find another job?" By some miracle, Mahiru was able to keep his bitterness and anger from his voice. He knew that Lily was only trying to be polite by avoiding the issue but Mahiru wanted to push him for an answer. "Was he talented?"

"Licht was a very talented pianist." Lily's smile was strained. "I didn't want to tell you because you're just settling in but you're going to hear about him eventually. Last week, he jumped off the cliff."

Bullshit, Mahiru wanted to scream but said instead, "I think I read about that in the paper. They didn't find his body so how can you be certain that he jumped? Did someone see him?"

Mahiru held his breath, a little afraid that Lily would see through his lie. There hadn't been any article about Licht written. The only reason he knew was because the police informed Licht's family and friends about his death. The fact that the Alicein kept his death from being publicized only irked Mahiru more.

"Yes, Yuri did. Poor girl is only twelve and she had to witness that. She tried to stop him too. We allowed her to return home so she could be with her family." Lily told him, sadly. His voice seemed honest and Mahiru wanted to believe him. But his faith in Licht was greater and he wished that he could ask the girl about that night. "It's just a shame what happened to Licht."

"It is…" Mahiru looked down at the ledger to hide the hurt in his eyes from Lily and Kuro. No matter how difficult it would be, he was determined to find the truth. "I should get started on making that list now."

Mahiru gave Lily a strained smile before turning back to the desk. He heard Lily leave and placed his head on the desk. Soft piano notes began to fill the room and Mahiru turned to the piano quickly. To his shock, Kuro was playing a lulling tune. Kuro didn't turn to face him but said, "You said that you wanted to listen to the piano while you worked."

"I didn't know you played." From the corner of Kuro's eyes, he could see Mahiru's expression soften. Throughout his entire conversations with Lily, Mahiru's expression looked tense. He didn't know why but it affected him more than it should and he wanted to do something to make him smile again.

* * *

"You'll think a man with such a unique name would be easier to find." Hyde sighed as he stared at his laptop screen. He tried to search for any hint of who Licht was by searching for his name and picture. But every attempt he made was a failure. Licht didn't have any identification on him when he fell either.

Hyde considered taking Licht back to the cliff to see if the location would trigger any memories but he decided against it. Someone tried to kill him there and going back could put their lives in danger if the person was still there. He was beginning to wonder if it would be better to go to the police and have them protect Licht.

"Hey, Shit rat." Hyde felt the world spin when someone turned his chair abruptly. He came face to face with Licht and he could only stare at him for a moment before Licht threw a jacket over his face. When he pulled off his jacket, Hyde noticed that Licht had borrowed his old black hoodie. It was a little big for him but Hyde had to admit that it suited him.

"Did you enjoyed playing dress up with my closet?" Hyde teased but Licht only clicked his tongue at him.

"If I had another choice, I would wear anything else. But this should do for now. We're going out and you're going to take me to the cliff." Licht's tone told him that it was an order rather than a request and Hyde quickly tried to stop him.

"Are you serious? You can't go out! Those bandages around your stomach are there because someone stabbed you. We don't know who that is and he could attack you again. He probably thinks you're dead so you're safe here. I didn't drag you out and treated your wounds for you to just run off into danger."

"I didn't ask for your help then. But I'm asking for it now." Licht might not have his memories but something in him knew that he didn't want to depend on others. "I can't take not knowing who I am. So, help me get my memories back. I'm not going to get them back while I'm here."

Hyde could see how determined Licht was and sighed. He knew that Licht would only leave by himself if he said no so Hyde put on his jacket. "Fine. We'll go around town and see if anything triggers a memory but I'm not taking you back to the cliff."

"Let's go then. Hurry up!" Licht was already walking out the door and Hyde could only follow him.


	3. Chapter 3

Kuro yawned as Mahiru turned the page. Mahiru didn't seem to be tired as he continued to write a list of the heirlooms to be donated and details on each. An hour had already passed and Kuro ran out of songs to play but Mahiru didn't seem to notice that he had stopped playing. His focus was on the ledger and his brows were drawn together in concentration.

"You're going to get wrinkles if you keep glaring at that book." Kuro tried to catch Mahiru's attention but he didn't look up from the ledger. He laid on the couch and buried his head in a cushion to have an afternoon nap. Lily asked him to watch Mahiru but he doubted someone like him had any bad intentions. Anyways, he was only writing notes so Kuro let himself doze off.

"Kuro, there's a page missing in this ledger." Mahiru looked over his shoulder as he spoke to Kuro. His reply was a gruff groan and Mahiru frowned because Kuro seemed to be asleep. He walked to the couch and tried to pull Kuro off. "C'mon, get up and call Lily so I can ask him about it. If there's a page gone, I might miss one of the heirlooms."

"Troublesome. I was just about to sleep." Kuro sat up since it was obvious that Mahiru wasn't going to stop. Mahiru held out the ledger to him and showed him the torn page. He read the dates on the previous page and shrugged. "Whatever's written there was bought twenty years ago so I doubt the Alicein will donate anything that recent. You only need to look at the pages Lily bookmarked."

"Yeah, but I just want to be thorough. What if Lily forget to mark an entry? If I don't read every single entry, I might miss something. It's simpler to resolve mistakes early rather than later." Mahiru stated and Kuro wondered if he should believe him. Why would he be interested in things he wasn't tasked to appraise? But he looked honest so Kuro brushed off any suspicion he had.

"Lily's not the kind of person to overlook something so don't worry. If it's still bothering you, we'll ask him about it later. Now, if there's nothing else, I'm going back to sleep." Kuro laid down but Mahiru caught his hand and he tried pulled him off the couch again. "What is it now?"

"I'm finished making the catalogue so we need to bring down the heirlooms from the attic now. I still don't know where everything is so you need to show me the way. But you don't have to worry about any heavy lifting since I want to bring down the lighter and more fragile ones first. Can you also get me a box, gloves and some soft fabrics?"

"I don't want to do any lifting at all today. And when did I become your assistant?" Kuro grumbled but stood. Lily told him to watch over him but he didn't think Mahiru knew of the arrangement. He held the door open for Mahiru and gestured for him to walk to the left. "We'll have to climb a bunch of stairs so I hope you're ready."

"It must be easy to get lost in this house." Mahiru commented as they walked down the hall until they reached a staircase. When he glanced up, he saw three flights of stairs above them. "This is a big house for just one family. Wouldn't it be simpler to have a smaller home rather to than to have so many rooms empty? It must be difficult for the maids to maintain all the rooms as well."

"You get used to how big it is after a while and this house is far from empty. You can say that, rather than a family, a community is living here. The Alicein takes in a lot of orphans and gives them work as servants or cooks. Most of us have worked here since we were young and we owe a lot to the Alicein family." Kuro explained and Mahiru looked down at his feet so he wouldn't see the doubt in his eyes.

Kuro's words were warm when he spoke about the Alicein family but Mahiru couldn't believe them entirely. Licht's letters described the household as generous and welcoming as well. Someone in the house killed his friend and tried to cover up his murder so it was hard to trust the kindness in everyone's eyes. Mahiru shook his head and forced himself to focus on his job as an appraiser.

"The entrance to the attic should be at the end of this hall." Kuro said once they reached the top floor. Mahiru was slightly out of breath from the climb and leaned against the rail. On the other hand, Kuro didn't look tired at all. "You don't climb stairs often?"

"Don't make fun of me. I'm fit but that was a lot of stairs!" Mahiru pushed himself away from the rail with a blush. "You get more opportunities to work out for your job. I work in a museum with an elevator."

"You don't look too weak but your endurance can use some work." Kuro poked Mahiru's arm and was surprised that it was stronger than he thought someone as lean as he would be. Mahiru pushed his hand away and puffed his cheeks as he walked down the hall in front of him. "Don't be angry. I doubt you'll be in a situation where you actually have to fight."

When they reached the end of the hall, Kuro untied a rope to release the attic stairs. He wrapped an arm around Mahiru's waist and pulled him away so he wouldn't be hit by the stairs. "Careful. There should be a flashlight in that table beside you that you can use. I just need to leave a note here so one of the servants doesn't accidentally close the ladder and trap us up there. You head up first."

"Okay," Mahiru nodded though he was still hesitant to do so. Just peering into the attic, he felt his nerves bundle. He didn't know why, but it felt ominous to him. Taking the flashlight, he forced himself to ignore the feeling and climbed the stairs.

He found that it was dark and dusty when he stepped fully into the attic but it seemed to be a regular attic. Mahiru pointed his flashlight to the ceiling and tried to find a light source. He began to search the attic and he tried not to trip over any of the boxes. The attic was so spacious that a person could live in it. Mahiru wouldn't be surprised if it was larger than his apartment.

In the darkness, Mahiru couldn't see very well and he shone the light over the ground to make sure he wouldn't step on anything. He wondered why there were several things left out in the open and not in a box. Books and small trinkets littered the floor but there was a layer of dust on them so he knew that they were left there for a long time.

"People need to learn how to clean up for themselves." Even though it wasn't his home, Mahiru didn't like things to be left unorganized. He picked up each book as best as he could with only hand since he didn't want to put down the flashlight. Mahiru followed the trail of books until he came across a forgotten corner of the attic. There was a bed tucked against the wall.

If it wasn't for the dust everywhere, Mahiru would've thought that someone was living in the attic. The flashlight he had didn't lessen his worries when he saw that there was a desk and a dresser full of clothes. Curious, Mahiru scanned the desk and it saw a picture frame. He brushed away the dust with his thumb and revealed a family portrait. "I wonder who they are."

Mahiru felt a hand on his shoulder and turned sharply. With a slightly panicked scream, he dropped the books and swung the flashlight at him. The person caught his wrist and then wrapped an arm around his waist to restrain him. "Hey, it's just me. Calm down."

"Kuro?" Mahiru recognized his voice and felt his body relaxed. Once he stopped struggling, Kuro let him go. With the little light around them, Kuro could see Mahiru was shaking slightly and gently stroked his head. Whenever his siblings were scared, he would always comfort them. He was accustomed to the household but he knew that the atmosphere could be a little suffocating to an outsider.

"Just wait here and I'll turn on the light." Kuro waited for Mahiru to nod before he left again. He didn't take the flashlight because he knew the house well enough that he could maneuver through it without light. He ran his hand over the wall until he felt his hand brush against fabric. He opened the curtains and light flooded in through the window. "Is that better?"

"You just startled me." Mahiru insisted and turned off the flashlight. His eyes fell onto the bed again and had to ask. "Did someone use to live here?"

"Who wants to live up here when there's a million rooms downstairs? You've been watching too many horror movies. Don't let your imagination run away from you. We just have a lot of old furniture that we dump here." Kuro told him and Mahiru chastised himself for becoming scared so easily. "The Alicein are rich but they're a normal family so just focus on finding everything."

"We should look in each box and compare when we find to the description I wrote. Do you have the box and everything else I asked for?" Mahiru took out the notebook he wrote all his notes in. He walked to a box lying next to the box. "We should start at this end of the attic and make our way to the other side. It's best if we be methodical with this."

"I thought you said we'll only be carrying the lighter stuff today." Kuro groaned but began to look through another box next to him. Mahiru placed his notebook between them so they both reference it. "It seems like this box has a lot of jewelry in it. You should look at them just to make sure. I don't know why Lily didn't get the maids to bring everything down."

"I'm sure he was just worried about the heirlooms being damaged." Mahiru carefully wrapped each of the jewellery individually and placed them delicately in the box. Kuro could see the great care and respect in Mahiru's movements as he did so. "It's important to preserve the feelings of the past. If we don't, they'll just be lost in time."

"Is that the reason why you decided to work in a museum?" Kuro asked as he pulled out a box from beneath an upright piano. As he stood, he bumped his head against the piano and winced. He heard something chime inside the piano and hoped that he didn't break anything.

"Are you okay, Kuro?" Mahiru knelt next to him and gestured for him to sit still. Careful not to hurt him, Mahiru ran his fingers through his hair to search for any injuries. He was relieved that Kuro didn't seem hurt and smiled down at him. "You've got a clean bill of health."

"Something's like that isn't going to hurt me." Kuro blushed and turned away from him when he realized how close they were. He stood and pressed a piano key. "It sounds like it's okay so—"

Kuro raised a brow when the center C key sounded off to him. It sounded like something was sitting on the strings inside, stifling the note. He considered opening the panel to look inside but decided not to. While he knew how to play, he doubted he could fix one.

"Is everything okay?" Mahiru asked and Kuro only shrugged. "I have to admit that I'm surprised that someone like you knows how to play. You don't seem like the type to like classical music."

"I'm not. The only reason I learned how to play was because my brother got really into it and tried to drag us all along. I don't even know why Hyde wanted to learn how to play when he was more of a theater kid. But my siblings really liked hearing me play when they were younger so I just stuck with it."

"You sound like a wonderful brother." Mahiru's genuine compliment made Kuro blush and he shook his head. "But my friend might take issue with you for learning how to play like that. I'm sure he would say something like: 'If you're not going to put everything you have into it, why did you start at all?' He loves the piano and would play until his fingers fell off if I don't stop him."

"You friend sounds like the pianist we had. Licht was excited when Lily told him that I knew how to play but then he lectured me about not practicing enough. He would play past midnight too and not even Lily could get him to stop."

"He sounds like quite the character." Mahiru laughed softly but Kuro thought his smile was a little strained. "Can I ask you something strange? I feel bad about stealing your room from you so is it possible for me to stay in Licht's room. He only… left recently so it should still be furnished. We don't have to tell Lily if you'll get in trouble. All I need is the key to his room."

Kuro hesitated to agree. He promised Lily that he would watch Mahiru. He was a guard and his brother was the head butler so he had access to the keys to all the rooms in the house. Licht's room wasn't too far from his and he doubted that Mahiru had any ill intentions. "Alright but not a word of this to Lily."

"I promise." Mahiru held out his pinky to him. Kuro thought that it was a little childish but wrapped his pinky around Mahiru's. "Now let's get back to finding everything."

* * *

"Thank you for doing this and I'm sorry for taking advantage of your generosity." Mahiru whispered as Kuro opened the door to Licht's room. They stepped inside and Kuro placed the key on the drawer for Mahiru. "It might take me a while to sneak all of my things to this room so I'll drop by your room every once in a while."

"Then you should keep the key to my room." Kuro walked to the closet and pulled out some blankets. "This room is a little barren. The maids removed all of Licht's things and ship them to his family."

"It's okay, all I need is a blanket." Mahiru took the blankets from him and placed them on the bed. He tried to smile as Kuro walked to the door. He found himself following him and stopped him as he stepped out. "Thank you, Kuro. I know that it's probably because you were annoyed to have me as a roommate but you're really kind."

"You weren't that bad of a roommate. You should try sleeping with one of my brothers. Now get some sleep." Kuro chuckled and walked back to his room. Mahiru closed the door behind him and leaned against him. It was oddly silent and cold without Kuro and Mahiru looked around the room. Kuro said that they removed all of Licht's things but hopefully there was a hint of what happened to him.

Mahiru began to search the room but every place he looked was empty. The closet and drawers didn't give him any hint of what could've happened to Licht. He looked under the bed and reached underneath but once again found nothing. He slumped onto the bed with a heavy sigh and looked out the window. "C'mon, Licht, give me something to help find your killer. You're probably an angel now so help me."

A stifling silence remained in the room and Mahiru sighed. What else could he expect? Mahiru turned off the light and wrapped the blanket around him tighter. He couldn't bring himself to sleep and found himself staring out the window instead. The trees outside the window blocked the moonlight from entering the room and Mahiru stared at the shadows they created.

A shadow shifted unnaturally and moved away from the tree. Despite the fear clutching Mahiru for a second, he walked to the window and looked outside. He narrowed his eyes and tried to see the shadow more clearly but it was too dark. The shadow stopped and suddenly turned to him. Mahiru covered his mouth to stop himself from screaming and stumbled away from the window.

He was certain that the shadow was a person and looked directly at him. Instinct drove Mahiru and he ran out of the room. At first, he didn't know where to run but, in the end, he found himself knocking on Kuro's door. When Kuro opened the door, he was rubbing his tired eyes but became alert when he saw how pale Mahiru was. "Is everything okay?"

"There was someone outside the window!" Mahiru told him frantically.

"You're really into horror movies, aren't you? It was probably one of the other guards on night shift." Mahiru was still shaking in front of him so opened the door wider for him. "Wanna' continue being roommates until you stop seeing ghosts?"

"I'm really sorry but thank you." Mahiru walked into their room and could feel his racing heart begin to slow. Kuro didn't say another word as he went back to sleep in his bed. He tried to do the same but Mahiru couldn't stop thinking about the shadow he saw. It moved like a person but he didn't think it was a guard.

Mahiru looked down at the key in his hand. He grabbed it before he left the room so he would be able to go back whenever he wanted. He remembered the stifling silence of the room and closed his eyes. He could hear Kuro's soft breathing fill the silence and felt himself relaxed. Mahiru placed the key in his pocket and decided he would only go back to look for clues.


	4. Chapter 4

"Were you some weird shut in or something? We went into every single store but not even one knew your name." Hyde groaned as he walked back to his home. They had been visiting shops throughout the afternoon, asking them if they knew a man named Licht who had a white strand of hair. He looked back to Licht who was walking slightly behind him and he looked deep in thought. "Don't look so down. Someone's bound to recognize you when you're so unique."

Hyde playfully push Licht's hood off his head and gently ran his fingers through the white patch of hair he had. It was easily recognizable so Hyde thought it would be best to hide it in case the person who tried to kill Licht saw them. But it was dark now so it should be safe. He had to admit that he found Licht's unique appearance cute and it would be a shame to hide him away.

"We're not close so don't touch me like we are." Licht glared at him and slapped his hand away. Even if he was helping him find his memories, he was still cautious of Hyde. The man was simply too forward and his carefree attitude annoyed him. He also questioned why he would help a near stranger. He made sure to keep a distance between them because of that.

"I saved you and you spent a couple days in my bed. If we aren't close after that, I don't know how to describe our relationship." Hyde chuckled and Licht faced him. He was prepared to snap back at him but stopped when he saw how honest and open his eyes were. His face was expressive and his smile gave him a vague memory but he couldn't place where he saw it.

"Did we know each other before you saved me?" Licht asked. "If you didn't, why would you help me?"

"Long ago, I promised myself that I wouldn't let anyone die in front of me again." A shadow quickly passed Hyde's face before he masked it with a sad smile. "So, whenever I see someone in trouble, I try to help. Anyways, if you save an angel you get a wish. When this is all over and you get your memory back, be prepared to grant my wish."

"You're a strange man, Hyde. You say things that makes you sound like a good man but you're really a demon, aren't you? I'm not going to grant the wish of a demon because…" Licht trailed off and stopped walking. Hyde saw the sudden realization on his face and thought Licht remembered something about himself. His eyes shined as he exclaimed: "Because, I'm an angel. I'm an angel, Hyde!"

"… I know, I've been calling you one this entire time." Hyde laughed slightly but Licht appeared serious. He teasingly called him an angel because, despite his dark hair and hard features, he looked like one to Hyde. Licht shook his head and touched the white strand in his hair.

"I  _am_  a real angel." Hyde was shocked by Licht's outrageous statement for a moment before he laughed again. It was so amusing and his expression when he said it was almost endearing to Hyde. Licht saw him laughing and he scowled at him before he kicked him lightly. "Don't laugh at an angel. I finally remember something and you're treating it as a joke?"

"I'm sorry for laughing. I do believe that you're an angel." Hyde decided to humour him and his delusional declaration. "But how is that going to help us discover what happened to you?"

"I don't recognize this town or anyone here and they didn't recognize me. This isn't my home, I can feel it in my gut, so there must be a reason I came to this city. It must have something to do with my duty as an angel. I came here with a mission and whoever tried to hurt me must be a demon, intent on stopping me." Licht explained confidently but then stopped to study Hyde. "That demon wasn't you, was it?"

"Wait, if it was me, I wouldn't be helping you now. I'm trying to get your memories back." Hyde quickly raised his hands in surrender. Licht relaxed and nodded at his logic. Seeing his shoulders loosen, Hyde lowered his hands and hooked his arm around Licht. "You're an angel but you still get hungry. You want to go out to eat to celebrate regaining your first memory? I know this little place that not a lot of people go to so you won't even have to wear your hood while you eat."

Before Licht could even answer, Hyde was pulling him away. His stomach rumbled slightly so Licht decided not to fight him and walked next to him. Hyde's hand on his arm was sturdy and he knew that he was strong because he saved him but that strength felt comforting to Licht rather than frightening. If he was honest with himself, he would admit that he was a little worried about the man that tried to kill him.

As they walked, Licht looked around the area for anything that could spark a memory. His eyes fell onto a dark path and Licht stopped Hyde. It was too dark to see anything beyond the entrance but something about it drew Licht to it. "Where does that lead to?"

"The cove beneath the cliff." Hyde told him. "Tourists like to visit the caves there. That night I found you, I went to see those caves again and saw you falling."

"Then, let's go there. It might help me remember something." Licht started towards the path but Hyde held him back.

"Are you crazy? It's too dangerous to go to the cove or caves when it's this dark. The tides are highest at night too so you can easily get trap in a cave and drown. I'm able to go at night because I've been exploring those caves since I was young so I know them like the back of my hand but you don't. I already told you going there is dangerous because that person could still be there."

"You said going to the cliff was too dangerous but the cove shouldn't be. It might help me remember so I want to go." Hyde tried to deter him but he knew from Licht's eyes that he wouldn't be able to and sighed.

"I'll take you tomorrow but it's too dangerous to go at night. How about we just eat and then go home?" Hyde compromised and was relieved when Licht nodded so he didn't have to argue with him further. He returned to leading Licht to the restaurant and he had to wonder what he got himself into when he saved Licht, a man who believed he was an angel and had no sense of self preservation. But when he looked down at him, Hyde couldn't regret it. Licht was interesting, to say the least.

* * *

"Do you want to go out?" Kuro asked and Mahiru turned to face him sharply, a little shock be his offer. His confused expression and blush made Kuro realize that his words sounded like he was asking him out on a date. With a small blush himself, Kuro rushed to correct himself. "Not as a date or anything. You've been staring outside the window a lot so I thought you wanted to go outside."

"Thank you for offering but it's okay." Mahiru smiled at him and laughed at himself. Of course, Kuro wouldn't ask out a person he barely knew. While Kuro seemed like a kind and good man, Mahiru wanted to focus on finding Licht's killer. "I'm sorry for making you stay in to watch me all the time. If you want, you can go out. I'll be okay here on my own."

"Can you really carry this on your own?" Kuro gestured to the heavy box on the ground. They were in the attic, collecting heirlooms to bring down but Kuro would always catch Mahiru looking out the window. From their short time together, he knew that Mahiru wasn't the type of person to be so distracted.

Curious, he looked out the window to see what Mahiru was staring at and saw that it was the cliff not too far from the mansion. He wondered if hearing about Licht spooked him because Mahiru would become tense often. It was as if he saw ghosts all around him and couldn't relax. He remembered how he ran out of Licht's room in fear the previous night and wondered if there was something he could do for him.

"Is there something wrong?" Kuro decided to ask him rather than dance around the issue. "You're going to be living here for a couple months so it's going to cause trouble if you feel uncomfortable. Just tell me or Lily if something is bothering you and we'll help you."

"Thank you but it's really nothing." Mahiru turned away from the window and returned his attention to the heirlooms. "We just need to find a few more of the smaller heirlooms and then we could bring down the larger ones tomorrow. We should be able to carry the instruments on our own but I'm a little worried about the furniture. Didn't Lily say that there was someone that we should ask for things like that?"

"A giant kid named Tetsu," Kuro nodded and took out his phone. "I'll text him and tell him to make some time to help us tomorrow. Looks like I can take a break tomorrow if he's carrying stuff for you. You really don't need me if you have him, right?"

"You act like I'm a tyrant but I'm not that bad, am I?" He had been told that he could be critical of others but he didn't think he was. Mahiru never had an assistant before because he preferred to work independently. Most of his life, he had to do things on his own so he rarely turned to others for help. "Are you sure that it's not your lazy personality?"

"Can't deal." Kuro groaned at Mahiru's light chastising. But, even as he complained, he sorted through a box of china and silver with the utmost care. "You're not a tyrant, per se, but more like a housewife that nags a lot. I avoided getting married so I don't know how I still ended up with a housewife."

"I'm not your housewife or a tyrant!" Mahiru denied with a blush and Kuro chuckled at his response. His simple reaction was amusing as he shook his head furiously. "We're co-workers. Don't say weird things like that or else people might get weird ideas about us. How about we take a break and eat lunch? I'm not a tyrant so I'll make you something to thank you for your help so do you have requests?"

"Ramen. We have some cup noodles in the kitchen so I can make it myself." Kuro answered him quickly and Mahiru sighed. He would always eat processed food and Mahiru wanted to lecture him about his health but stopped himself because he knew Kuro would only tease him about being a housewife again. "I'll take this box to the library's office and lock them up so you can head to the kitchen first."

Kuro picked up the box effortlessly and Mahiru wondered how he could be so strong despite his lifestyle. He waited for Mahiru to walk down the stairs first before he followed him. While he trusted Mahiru, he knew he had to be cautious about leaving him alone in the attic. "You know the way to the kitchen already, right Mahiru? I'll meet you there in a bit."

"I should be fine on my own." Mahiru reassured him as he pulled up the ladder to the attic. The house was large and he had only arrived a couple days ago but he was certain he knew the way to the kitchen. It wasn't too far from the library so they walked together. "Why do you always eat cup ramen? I'm sure the chefs would make you something healthier."

"I don't want to trouble them. It's just easier to eat those packets than to asked them to cook." Kuro shrugged. "There's no other reason."

"You're kinder than you give yourself credit for. How about I cook you some homemade ramen? It'll be healthier and you don't have to worry about troubling anyone. I like to cook anyways." Mahiru smiled up at him and walked ahead of him to the kitchen. "I'll get started on it right away so you can eat as soon as you get to the kitchen."

"That man is really something." Kuro watched Mahiru leave before he walked to the kitchen. He complained about Mahiru but he was kind at heart.

* * *

As Mahiru washed the dishes, he looked out the window to the garden outside. Just a short walk from the garden outside would take him to the cliff. They already finished eating and he had nothing else to do but be alone with his thoughts. Kuro was talking to Lily in the hallway and he said that he would be back shortly so he was alone. A part of him knew that he should go to look for clues but Mahiru didn't know if he was ready to visit the place Licht died.

If he wanted to go find clues without Kuro watching him, this would be his best opportunity to do so. There was a backdoor leading to the garden that he could use without anyone seeing him but he couldn't make his legs move and they were frozen stiff. He vowed to find Licht's killer but it was difficult to confront the fact that his friend was dead.

 _Get a hold of yourself. You knew what you were getting into. If you don't find his murderer, no one will._  Mahiru told himself as he put away the last dish. Gathering his courage, he pushed himself away from the sink. He peered into the hallway and it seemed like Kuro and Lily were still deep in conversation. Mahiru left a note telling Kuro that he was in the garden so he wouldn't be worried when he returned.

Mahiru had never walked far from the manor but he was certain that he would be able to find his way to the cliff. Whenever he looked out the window, it appeared to be north of the garden so he only had to continue walking straight forward. There should be a gate he could use to exit the garden and he hoped that it wasn't locked.

He walked quickly through the garden, hoping that no one would see him and ask him why he was going to the cliff. Luckily the gate was unlocked and he didn't see anyone else as he walked out. It didn't take him long to reach the cliff and Mahiru stared at the view. There was a fence bordering the edge of the grassy cliff and Mahiru stood behind it, staring at the ocean.

The water below was calm and quiet but Mahiru's heart didn't reflect that. He came to the cliff on a whim so he didn't have a plan so he looked down the sheer drop as he tried to think. A warm breeze washed over him and the rustling grass made him feel restless. There weren't any trees or bushes for someone to hide in so Licht must've seen the person approach him.

If he did, Mahiru was certain that Licht would fight back so he looked for any sign of a struggle. He followed the small, wooden fence and searched the ground. Mahiru wondered if he would be able to find anything because the incident occurred a week ago. There was a broken section of the fence and Mahiru knelt in front of it.

Mahiru searched the grass for anything the killer or Licht could've dropped but it was difficult since he didn't know what he was looking for. He found some coins and other small things but none of the gave Mahiru any hint of what happened. He sighed and leaned against the broken fence.

He looked down at the cove below and watched the water crash against the cliff. Was this the last thing Licht saw? The police said it was around midnight when he jumped and Mahiru could only imagine how scared Licht must've been. Mahiru closed his eyes and listened to the water clapping and let the wind wash over him. "I wish you were here, Licht."

"Be careful, Shit Rat, or you're going to drown both of us!" Mahiru jumped when he heard an eerily familiar voice. It sounded like Licht and he looked over the edge of the cliff again. He never expected to hear his voice again. If it was a ghost or just his delusion, he was certain that it was his voice. But when he looked over the edge, the only thing he saw was rock and water.

"Licht?" Mahiru leaned hazardously over the broken fence. Every logical thought told him that it couldn't be Licht since he was dead so he shouldn't be hearing Licht's voice. Even though he called his name, he didn't hear Licht's voice again. "Am I going crazy?"

"Mahiru, what are you doing?" A strong hand pulled him away from the cliff and Mahiru yelped in surprise. Warm arms wrapped around him and he looked up to see Kuro staring down at him with a mixture of panic and anger. "Do you know how dangerous this cliff is? Do you like hanging from dangerous heights or something? You could die if— Are you crying?"

Kuro cut himself off when he saw the tears in Mahiru's eyes. His note said that he was taking a walk through the garden so Kuro was shocked to see Mahiru go to the cliff instead. He decided to watch him and his behaviour confused him even more because he knew that Mahiru was looking for something but didn't know what. But he forgot all of those questions as he stared into his tear filled eyes. "What's wrong?"

"I heard Licht's voice. It was him." Mahiru shivered against him slightly and Kuro patted his head.

"It wasn't him." Kuro wondered if Mahiru believed in ghosts and tried to comfort him. "I'm sure you're just hearing things. There are caves beneath this cliff so a lot of things tend to echo and make strange noise. You're probably looking too much into it so don't worry about it. Ghosts aren't real so don't be so paranoid. You don't even know what Licht sounds like."

"I do…" Mahiru bit his lip and turned to face Kuro. It was difficult to face the entire mansion and his grief on his own and he wondered if he could trust Kuro. "He was my friend."


	5. Chapter 5

"He was my friend." Mahiru said without thinking. The moment the words left his lips, Mahiru stiffened. He didn't know if he should look up and see Kuro's reaction or not and he chastised himself. He didn't know if he could trust Kuro but he felt so safe in his arms that he blurted out the words. A part of him wanted to run away but he knew that he couldn't when Kuro was still holding him. "… You can let me go now."

"Oh, I'm sorry." Kuro realized the position they were in and let him go. They both backed away from each other but Kuro made sure to stay close enough to stop Mahiru from running away. His gut told him that something wrong and he thought of his strange behaviour in the past. "Mahiru, what do you mean Licht was your friend?"

Mahiru's hand tightened in the dirt and his mind raced. He couldn't lie to Kuro because he would easily know if he did. More than that though, he didn't want to lie to him when he was looking at him with his red eyes. So, he took a deep breath and started. "Licht was my friend. We've known each other since we were in high school. When I heard that he was dead, I…"

His voice began to shake and tears filled his eyes again. Mahiru wasn't able to grieve properly when he arrived at the Alicein's mansion and now that he could speak about Licht openly, the tears finally came. Kuro didn't know if it was his place to comfort him but he couldn't watch him cry either. Hesitantly, he reached out and gently wiped his tears away.

"When I heard that he killed himself, I couldn't believe it." Mahiru continued when the tears lessened. He didn't know why but Kuro's silent presence comforted him and allowed him to go on. "The Licht I knew is full of life and he was so strong. He would never do something like this and leave everyone behind. I need to know what happened while he was here."

"Mahiru…" Kuro said his name softly but didn't know what else to say. It was clear that he was close to Licht and that explained why he would appear sad at times. But there was still something bothering him about his behaviour. "You acted like you didn't know who Licht was. Why didn't you talk to the police or ask us directly?"

Mahiru choose his words carefully but he knew they would hurt Kuro no matter how he phased it. "Licht would never kill himself. So, thinking simply, someone in the mansion murdered him and made it look like a suicide. I did go to the police and asked them to reopen the case but they refused to. I'm here to find the truth and who killed my friend."

"You think someone killed Licht?" Kuro's eyes widened but Mahiru's eyes stayed firm. He remembered how Mahiru would become scared of seemingly nothing. At the time, he thought he was superstitious and saw ghost everywhere in the mansion. Now he knew that he saw murderers. "I didn't know Licht well but I know the people in this house. They would never kill him."

"Then what happened to my friend?" Mahiru shot back and Kuro knew that he couldn't say that Licht killed himself. From the stubborn glint in his eyes, he knew that Mahiru truly believed that his friend was murdered and wouldn't change his mind. "Why would he jump? He was on the path to becoming a famous pianist. That was his dream and he wouldn't give that up!"

"I know that this is hard for you to accept and you're probably grieving but you can't accuse people of murder. No one here would do anything like that. You met Lily already so you should know this too." Kuro stressed and he could see clearly that Mahiru was struggling with himself.

"So, what now? Are you going to tell Lily about this and get me fired?" Mahiru wiped the tears from his eyes and faced Kuro with a fiery determination. He barely began investigating and now he would be forced to leave. He knew that he would never have another opportunity to find the truth if they knew he was looking for Licht's murderer. The killer would probably run away or be more careful around him.

"I'm not going to tell Lily to fire." Kuro said after a moment and Mahiru's eyes widened. He knew that it would be best but the grief he saw in Mahiru stopped him. He couldn't help but pity him and he wanted to help him. "We still need someone to appraise the heirlooms. I watched you work and you're probably the best person for the job."

"Thank you, Kuro! I always intended to work honestly while I investigate. If I can stay, can you not tell Lily about my relationship with Licht as well." Hope bloomed in Mahiru and he took Kuro's hands in his. He leaned closer to him and pleaded to him with his eyes. "Please, Kuro? I just want to know what happened to my friend."

"… I'll keep your secret on one condition." Mahiru readily nodded even before Kuro told him what the condition was. "I want to help you investigate. You don't know this house and the servants like I do. I can help you find the truth."

Mahiru considered his offer for a moment. Kuro was the head guard and his brother was Lily so he would be able to enter any room without causing suspicion. He would be a good ally to have if he wanted to find the truth. But, it would also be comforting to know that there was one person in the house that he could rely on. Kuro had already supported him a lot and comforted him when he was scared.

"Okay but please don't let your emotions blind you to evidence." Mahiru held out his hand to Kuro as a silent truce.

"Don't let your emotions make you suspect innocent people." Kuro took his hand and stood, pulling Mahiru to his feet. The determination in his brown eyes was tangible and Kuro had to respect it even if he did suspect his friends and siblings. He knew that it must've taken Mahiru a lot of courage to investigate a murder alone. Then, a thought came to him. "Did you ever suspect me?"

"Not once." Mahiru told him honestly. The thought never once occurred to him and he always felt like he could trust Kuro. He seemed relieved by his answer and gave him a small, thankful smile. "I can't see you hurting Licht. Even if you hated him, you're too unmotivated to do anything and you'll just avoid him."

"Don't know if that was a compliment or not." Kuro rolled his eyes but he was glad that Mahiru never suspected him. He didn't know why, but his trust was important to him and he didn't like the thought of Mahiru suspecting him. "But I'm going to help you as much as I can."

"I'm glad I don't have to do this alone anymore." Mahiru smiled earnestly and Kuro couldn't help but feel a little worried. He didn't know what they would discover but he hoped that it wouldn't be hurt Mahiru. There was something about his smile that made Kuro want to protect it and he unconsciously tightened his grip around Mahiru's hand. "Let's head back to the mansion before Lily starts to worry where we are."

* * *

"Careful there, Angel Cakes." Hyde caught his hand and stopped Licht from slipping over a puddle. Even though Hyde knew the caves better than him, Licht was walking ahead of him. While his curious expression was cute, trying to reign in Licht was difficult. He kept a strong grip on his hand to keep him from running off again. "If we get lost, we'll be trapped down here."

"If we get lost, I'm leaving you behind and finding my own way out. You're so slow I doubt we'll be able to find anything. Where did you see me fall?" Licht asked and Hyde ran his flashlight over the cave walls. They all looked the same to him so he didn't know how he could tell them apart.

"This way. Watch your step or else you'll trip over a rock. If you're going to fall over anything, I want it to be heads over heels in love with me." Hyde joked and quickly ducked under the Licht's kick. He laughed and gave him a teasing grin. "Don't be like that, Angel Cakes. You looked so serious that I wanted to tease you. That's not the smile I was hoping for but at least your expression changed."

"How was that supposed to make me smile?" Licht's eyes narrowed at him but Hyde's grin never faltered. He could never make sense of Hyde and his behaviour. When he flirted with him, Licht thought that he didn't take his situation seriously but he really wanted to cheer him up. He stared at Hyde's back as he followed him.

Licht felt a slight breeze and a soft light streamed in through an opening so Hyde turned off his flashlight. When he walked closer, he saw that there was only a steep drop outside the cave's mouth. The fall wasn't much though, only a few feet. Hyde stood on the edge and looked down at the water. "You're lucky the water in this area doesn't have many rocks and you didn't hit your head. I was able to fish you out."

"Why did you come to this cave at night?" Licht asked. He remembered how he warned him against visiting the cave at night. He knew that he should be thankful that Hyde was there that night to save him but he still had to be cautious.

"I wanted to see that." Hyde turned on his flashlight and shined it over markings on the wall. Licht looked closely at it and realized that name and tallies were carved into the wall. "This is my family's secret spot. We would always compete to see who was brave enough to jump into the water. We're lucky that we didn't get hurt being stupid kids."

"You have a lot of siblings." Licht knelt and read through the names. He stopped on several names that were oddly familiar. "Snow Lily? Kuro?"

"Lily's the baby of the family. Kuro's the oldest out of all of us but you'll never guess if you meet him. He doesn't have any points, not because he was too scared to jump, but because he's lazy and said swimming was a pain. World End and I tried to push him in once and we ended up falling in instead."

Hyde laughed at memory but there was something sad in his voice. Licht wanted to ask him more but stopped himself. They barely knew each other so it wasn't his place. But he went on without Licht's prompting. "I don't get to see everyone much since we're pretty scattered right now. Whenever I come home, the first I do is come back here and remind myself that we're still a family even if we're apart."

Hyde ran his hand over the etching and Licht could see how lonely he was. "Where are they now?"

"Wrath got married to some guy with an apple farm and lives with him. World End hangs out around Italy a lot. Some of us still live here but I don't get many chances to return home and see them because I get pretty busy with my job." Hyde said regretfully. "I was thinking of surprising them with a visit but I got caught up taking care of you."

"I wonder if my family and friends are worried about me." Licht mused and tried to picture his parents but nothing but static filled his head. He knew that he didn't live in this city and he wondered if anyone even knew that he was missing. There were still so many questions he had and his inability only made him more frustrated.

"You're going to get wrinkles if you keep frowning like that." Hyde ruffled his hair before he let his hand trail down to smooth out the creases between his brows. "I'm sure that someone's looking for you and is worried about you. You're so cool that I'm sure someone noticed that you're missing. So, we need to work hard to get your memory back."

Hyde sounded confident and Licht wondered how he could be so certain when he knew as little about him as he did. Licht leaned out of the cave slightly and looked up the cliff. His hands shook slightly as he stared up at the sky. It was a clear day but a dark cloud flashed in his mind and he suddenly felt as if he was falling. His legs began to give beneath him but Hyde quickly caught him and kept him upright.

"You okay, Lichtan?"

"I just got a little dizzy." Licht quickly looked away from the sky and his eyes caught on Hyde's. The concern in them made Licht paused for a moment. He was the one that insisted they come and uncover his past but a part of him could help but be worried. "What's at the top of this cliff?"

"Nothing much." Hyde gently guided Licht away from the opening. "Some people like to go there for the view but it's a little out of the way so not many people visit it. I think the only people who do visit are the residents that live in the Alicein mansion. It's only a short walk from the place. Actually, a lot of my siblings work there so maybe I should call them and ask them about that night."

"Alicein? That's a strange name. Like  _Alice in Wonderland?_ " The old children book instantly came to mind when he heard the name. He stopped walking and touched the bandages over his waist. Hyde raised a brow at him and wondered what he was thinking because his eyes looked a little dazed. "Never mind. This place didn't make me remember much so we should try another approach."

"Lichtan, you know you can depend on me, right? If anything's bothering you, I'll help you. I already promised to help you find your memories again." Hyde told him but his earnest eyes said more to compel him. He didn't know but there was something familiar about them.

"Are you sure we didn't know each other before I lost my memory?" He asked again but Hyde's answer didn't change. He shook his head and didn't seem to be lying. "I trust you but it just feels like we've met before."

"I'm pretty sure I would remember meeting you." Hyde chuckled and took his hand. "We'll find your memories. We should go back home before the tide comes in and trap us in here."


	6. Chapter 6

"Wake up, Kuro!" Mahiru tried to shake him awake but he only pushed his hands away. With an irritated sigh, he pulled his blanket off him roughly. Kuro caught the blanket and pulled it back over him. He continued to tug at the blanket while Kuro stayed stubbornly under the covers. "We need to get to work. You're a grown man so you shouldn't need me to wake you up."

"Who said I wanted you to? Just give me another hour of sleep." Kuro groaned. He peeked out from the covers and saw that it was only six. Seeing the time, Kuro went back under the blankets and yanked it over his head. He heard Mahiru gasp and then a weight landed on him. He pulled the blanket off his face and found himself face to face with Mahiru.

He had been clutching the blanket when Kuro pulled it and the force sent him forward until he landed on top of Kuro. They were so close now that he could feel Kuro's breath brush his cheek but neither moved. As Kuro continued to stare at him with his usual bored expression, Mahiru felt heat spread across his cheeks. He waited for Kuro to say something first but regretted it when he did. "Decided to join me, did you?"

"No, I have not!" Mahiru pushed himself off Kuro and took the blanket with him. With a groan, Kuro sat up to face him as Mahiru whispered. "You promised to help me with… my friend. Please take this seriously. We only have a couple months to complete the appraisals and investigate so we need every minute. I already have our day planned."

"Of course you do." Kuro rolled his eyes and Mahiru replied by throwing a clean shirt at him. Usually, he worked the graveyard shift so he would sleep in but he had to wake up earlier since he met Mahiru. When he pulled the shirt off his face, he saw Mahiru's somber expression. He forced himself off his bed and walked to his closet. "So, what's the game plan?"

"I still want to work honestly on those heirlooms so I'm thinking we bring them down in the morning. I'll appraise them and do research at night. When you can, you're going to help me interview everyone. You know them so you can ask them where they were the night Licht died without causing suspicion." Mahiru explained but Kuro frowned as he thought over his plan.

"Everyone would say that they're asleep and we can't really confirm that. It's rare that workers have to share a room like we do. Asking them to prove it would be too suspicious." Kuro pointed out. "Yuri, the girl who saw him jumped, went back to her family and she lives in the next city over. I'll talk to people for you but I doubt we'll find anyone with a motive to kill him."

"You're giving up before we even began." Mahiru knew that Kuro would naturally side with his friends but he thought that he would help him a little more. "We're not professional investigators but there should be something we can do. We can talk to the workers closest to him and ask them if he said anything about someone threatening him. Doing something, no matter how small, is better than nothing."

"… I'll talk to the other night guards to see if they've seen anyone suspicious around that time. Maybe they saw someone heading to the cliff. I don't know if—" His phone on his nightstand cut him off and Kuro wondered who was calling him so early. He raised a brow when he saw that it was Hyde, his brother. From the corner of his eyes, he saw Mahiru leave to give him some privacy.

"Hey, Hyde. Did you forget that time zones existed again? The sun hasn't even come up here yet." Kuro groaned and laid back down on the bed. He had to admit that it was good to hear from his brother again because he was often busy travelling.

"Actually, we're in the same time zone for once. I came home a week ago but I couldn't visit the mansion because… something came up. I'm staying at Sensei's old house for now. I hope it's okay that I brought a friend home and he's staying with me for a while until he gets back on his feet." There was something in his voice that told him that Hyde was hiding something.

"If you trust him, I don't really see the problem. It's not like I'm going to be cleaning up the mess you make with your friend. So, do I know who this friend of yours is?" Kuro asked but Hyde didn't know how to answer. He barely knew anything about Licht so he couldn't answer his brother. Considering Licht's situation and the fact that someone was after him, he didn't know if he should involve Kuro.

"Angel-chan doesn't socialize much so I don't know if you've met him in town. I actually called you for more than to tell you about my new roommate. Have you and Lily heard any gossip in the Alicein's mansion? Maybe something about the cliff over the cove that we used to explore as kids." Kuro raised a brow at his question.

"You know I find things like gossip troublesome and you're better off asking Lily about these things."

"I did but he said that I shouldn't worry about it. It's just… He sounded like he was lying to me. Lily isn't the type of person that lies to us without a good reason. Are you guys in trouble in that giant house or something?" Hyde sounded worried and Kuro had to admit that he was concerned as well. He remembered how Lily asked him to watch over Mahiru and how it seemed like he was hiding something from him.

"Don't worry about it too much, Hyde. Lily's probably trying to think of your feelings when he didn't want to tell you about what happened. There was a death there. We don't really know the details but the polices thinks that it was a suicide." Kuro explained and Hyde was silent for a moment. He had to wonder why he asked because the Alicein kept the story from leaking.

Before he could ask, he heard a crash over the phone followed by Hyde's scream. "Angel-chan, be careful with that! Sorry, Kuro, I gotta go. I'll visit you guys sometime next week to catch up. Bye."

Kuro sighed and put aside his phone. As he stood to change, he glanced at the door and wondered if Mahiru was listening on the other side. When he was finished changing, he stepped out expecting to find him but the hall was empty. He didn't know where Mahiru would go without him since he said that he wanted to work together. He walked down the hall a little to look for him, thinking that he went to the kitchen.

As Kuro turned the corner, he crashed into someone. Something splashed onto his chest and the person gasp. He looked down and his eyes met with Mahiru's. With a flurry of apologized, Mahiru took his hand and pulled him into the kitchen. "I'm so sorry, Kuro! I thought that you were going to be a little longer on the phone so I went to get us some coffee. Thank god I made iced coffee for us."

"You really didn't need to. I'm not into bitter coffee." Kuro shrugged. Mahiru set aside the cups on the table. Then he took a wet paper towel and gently blotted the stain on Kuro's shirt.

"I'm so sorry. We're going to be working a late today so I thought I should make you something to help you stay awake. You didn't seem like a coffee person but I thought you might like iced coffee because it's sweeter." Mahiru explained as he tried to fix the stain. He was so focused on it that he didn't realize how close they were. Kuro felt his heart race slightly but he couldn't step away without making things awkward.

"I work the graveyard shift so I'm used to late nights." Kuro looked down at him the same time Mahiru turned his head up. Their eyes met and Mahiru's hand stilled against his chest for a moment. He could feel how strong he was beneath his hand and Mahiru stepped back with a small blush. He didn't know why he suddenly felt flustered because he already knew that Kuro was strong.

"It doesn't look like it's going to come out easily so you might want to change shirts. I'll try to get it out. Just leave it on my bed and I'll wash it for you tonight." Mahiru turned away from him to keep Kuro from seeing his blush and to throw away the paper towels . "How about you go change while I make us breakfast? Any requests?"

"I'm fine with anything as long as it doesn't end up on me." Kuro chuckled good-naturedly to lighten the mood around them. He noticed how Mahiru was avoiding his eyes and thought that it was because he felt a little guilty. "Look, it's just a shirt so don't worry about it. I have others and I'm not that attached to them. Just make me some pancakes or something and we'll be even."

"Okay." Mahiru smiled at him again and Kuro was relieved to see it. He found that he liked his smile much more than the worried expression he had earlier. As he walked back to his room, he looked down at the stain on his shirt. He remembered Mahiru's kind hand and walked faster.

* * *

"Here's the last batch." Mahiru set down the plate of pancakes in front of Hugh. He thought that he would only have breakfast with Kuro but others soon streamed into the kitchen once they smelled his pancakes. He had to admit that he was a little disappointed because he wanted to speak with Kuro alone. He couldn't turn them away though. "Does anyone want syrup?"

"Everyone's fine. Just sit down and eat." Kuro took Mahiru's arm gently when he passed his chair and set him into the empty chair next to him. Lily watched the small exchange with a smile since he knew that it wasn't often that his brother fretted over someone outside of their family. "Take care of yourself and eat. You said it yourself, we're going to have a busy day."

"I guess you're right." Mahiru relented because he couldn't argue with his logic. Kuro pushed a plate of pancakes in front of him and was rewarded with the thankful smile Mahiru gave him. It made him feel shy suddenly and he turned away.

The kitchen door suddenly opened and they all turned towards it. Lily immediately stood and became pale when he saw who it was. Mahiru didn't recognize the man and wondered who he was as the others stood to bow politely. Kuro gently pulled on his arm and whispered for him to follow their lead. "That's the young master, Misono."

"You're back early, Misono. Wasn't the trip supposed to last for another two weeks?" Lily went to his side and held out his hands to take Misono's luggage. "Why didn't you call before you returned? We would've greeted you properly and arranged a ride for you."

"I didn't call because I knew you would stop me from coming home again." Misono snapped back, thoroughly irritated with his best friend. He knew that Lily only sent him on the trip with the best of intentions so he tried to calm himself. "Look, I'm tired from the trip so all I want to do is rest. Just take my bags up to my room. I want to talk to you alone, Lily."

"I'll help carry them," Tetsu started to stand but stopped when Misono held up his hand.

"It's okay, Tetsu. I'm sorry for interrupting your breakfast. I thought that Lily would be the only one up this early." He said with a gentler voice this time. Tetsu looked a little disappointed and Misono could see it on his face. "Thanks for the offer though. I'll tell you about my trip after I finish unpacking my things."

The pair left and Mahiru watched them curiously. He wondered why he hadn't met an Alicein earlier. He pulled on Kuro's sleeve lightly to get his attention and whispered. "Were the Alicein family on a family trip or something?"

"Nope, just Misono." Kuro answered as he returned to eating. "The master, Mikado, is away on some business trip and said that he didn't want Misono to be lonely here. He sent him on some tour in Europe where he could visit museums. He's pretty smart so you two will probably hit it off talking about history and stuff like that. Just be careful of that temper of his."

"I think that going on a tour alone would be lonelier. At least here, he probably has some friends among the workers." Mahiru thought back to what Kuro told him about the Alicein family. He said that Misono was the heir and he had a weak body so his father was rather protective. It seemed strange that his father would send Misono on a trip alone if that was the case. "Kuro, when did Misono leave?"

Kuro had to think for a moment before he answered. "I think it was two weeks ago. I remember thinking that it was too noisy for a Saturday morning. The maids were all rushing to help pack because it was a last minute decision to send Misono on the trip."

"Two weeks ago, on Saturday?" Mahiru repeated and his brows furrowed. That was the day after Licht died.

* * *

"JeJe's going to kill me." Hyde groaned as he looked down at the broken bottled ship. His brother had made the ship by hand and he knew how long it took him to make it. When Licht tried to take down a book to read, he accidentally knocked it off the shelf. At least the glass bottle was still intact, which couldn't be said about the ship inside.

From the corner of his eyes, he watched Licht walking beside him. Hyde shifted the bottled ship into one hand so he could pat his shoulder. "Don't look so guilty, Lichtan. JeJe makes a thousand of these things and sells them in this antique shop. I'm sure he can fix this easily enough but he'll bitch about it to me. He has a lot of interesting stuff there so you can entertain yourself while I talk to him."

"I'm not a child. Just tell him that I was the one that broke it. It's my fault so I should take responsibility for it. Thinking simply, an angel shouldn't lie." Licht repeated familiar words but he didn't know where he heard them before. When his brows furrowed, Hyde gently rubbed his thumb over his brow.

"JeJe's going to yell at me for letting you break it so you don't need to protect me from my own brother. But aren't you sweet for worrying about me." Hyde chuckled and pushed off his hood. "We're here. You don't need to wear your hood inside. It should be safe inside and we don't need to worry about someone attacking you."

They walked inside and Licht looked around the small antique shop. Knick-knacks filled the display cases and he walked to one. While Licht was occupied with them, Hyde went to speak with the man behind the counter. He placed the bottled ship on the counter. "Hey, Mikuni, is JeJe in the back? I have a little something for him to repair."

"He's in the back but he's not that busy so he'll be able to pull himself away from his workbench to yell at you. You always were a troublemaker when you were a kid. JeJe says that you always bring trouble every time you come home." Mikuni chuckled as he picked up the glass bottle. "I'll be right back."

Hyde thanked him before he went back to Licht. He was standing in front of a small upright piano that was shoved into the corner of the shop. Licht looked distracted so Hyde thought that he could tease him a little. He kept his steps quiet and he gently blew into his ear. Licht jumped and instinctively turned to kick him but Hyde quickly dodged.

"What the hell, Shit Rat?" Licht glared at him and his face was a little red. "Don't sneak up on me like that. I thought…"

Hyde only meant to tease him but he realized that it must've scared Licht a little. He didn't remember his past and he was a little tense because of that. With a gentle hand on his arm, Hyde tried to ease the tension from his body. "You see anything you like here, Lichtan? I'll buy it for you but this piano might be a little expensive for me even if JeJe gives me a discount."

"This piano…" Licht ran his hand over the keys delicately.

"I can't buy it for you but I can play you a song." Hyde sat down on the bench and turned the music sheets until he found a simple song that he thought he could play. "I tried to learn how to play when I was younger but I only took lessons for a year. My brother, Kuro, was the only one that kept up with it. We were all a little surprise when the lazy cat of the family had a natural talent for playing."

"Isn't that a little insulting to say about your own brother?" Licht frowned. "It's a person's hard work that shines through, rather than talent, when they play. Look at how poorly you play because you're out of practice. Move aside, Shit Rat."

Licht sat on the small bench next to him and placed his fingers on the keys. Almost intuitively, he began to play. Hyde realized that he wasn't playing with the music sheets but he played  _Fur Elise_  perfectly. He watched Licht play in awe and his eyes were so focused on the keys that he doubted he noticed how he was staring. It was almost like he was in his own world and he pulled Hyde in with his song.

After he played the last few notes, Hyde clapped. "That was beautiful, Lichtan! I can see why you consider yourself an angel now. I'm sure that only an angel can play so well. It might even be pure enough to cleanse this world of greed. I wouldn't want for anything if I could hear you play everyday."

Licht touched the white streak in his hair and whispered. "I can see them. A huge crowd in front of my piano, crying and moved by my song. This must be why I came to this town."

He felt as if a weight has lifted from his shoulders and he began to play another song. Hyde watched him with a smile and thought that it was almost a shame they couldn't take the piano home with them because Licht looked so happy playing it. "Knowing that you're a pianist might help us find who you were. Maybe you were here for a recital or something."

Licht didn't respond but Hyde wasn't offended because he enjoyed watching his expression as he played. The more he watched him, the more certain he was that he was a pianist. Hyde's attention was only pulled away from Licht when he heard JeJe call for him. He looked over his shoulder to see JeJe gesture for him to follow him to the back room.

"I'll be right back, Lichtan." Hyde said but Licht didn't seem to hear him. He seemed to be immersed in the piano and Hyde decided that it was safe to leave him alone in the shop. He went to the back room to speak with JeJe. Almost immediately he closed the door behind him, JeJe sighed heavily.

"I can't believe the first thing you do when you return home after three years is break my stuff." JeJe looked at the bottled ship on his desk.

"Hey, is that any way to greet your brother after not seeing him in so long? It was an accident and I'll pay you back for any of the repair fees. I'm sorry so don't glare at me like that." Hyde pouted and sat in a spare chair. "How's work? Mikuni still working you like a slave driver? I still don't know why you work for that guy when you're always complaining about him."

"He's a pain but I don't hate him. Anyways, I owe him a lot." JeJe sat down as well. Hyde had always been surprised by how close JeJe and Mikuni were because they had such different personalities. "I'll be able to fix the boat and don't worry about a fee. One day, I should start charging you though."

"You'll be a millionaire and I'll be a pauper." Hyde chuckled but than his back stiffened when Licht's song stopped abruptly. He didn't know why but he knew that something was wrong. The feeling he had was confirmed when he heard a crash and Hyde rushed outside. He found Mikuni standing in front of a disheveled bookcase but he didn't see Licht in the room anymore. "Where's Licht?"

"If you're talking about the dark haired guy that attacked me, he ran outside." Mikuni grumbled as he tried to pick up the books littering the ground. "He just kicked me when I tried to talk to him and ran. When JeJe said you brought trouble with you, I didn't think he meant your boyfriend."

"I'll pay for whatever's broken but I really need to go after him. I'm so sorry, JeJe. Just call to tell me the amount I owe." Hyde said quickly before he ran out the door. Mikuni's eyes narrowed as he watched him leave. Then he turned to JeJe with hard eyes.

"This is going to be bad, isn't it?"


	7. Chapter 7

* * *

"Licht!" Hyde ran out of the antique store and called his name but he couldn't see him in the crowd outside. He wondered what made Licht panic and attack Mikuni. He remembered how relaxed Licht was as he played the piano. He didn't know what made Licht run but he needed to find him before anything happened to him. There was also someone after him and he didn't know the town well.

"Where did you go, Angel Cakes?" He scanned the street but he didn't see any sign of him. Hyde wished that he thought of giving Licht a phone but he didn't think they would become separated. Without his memory, there were few places Licht could run to for help. If he was running blindly, finding him would become difficult.

Then a thought came to Hyde and he ran down the street. Even if Licht didn't have his memories, there was still one place he knew. Hyde ran home. He desperately hoped that he would be there because he didn't know any other place to look for him. As he ran down the street, he didn't see Licht ahead of him and dread slowly settled in him.

But there, in front of his door, was Licht. He was sitting on the porch, curled into a ball. He could see that he was shaking a little so Hyde approached him hesitantly because he didn't want to scare him further. Hyde wanted to gather him in his arms but he stopped himself. Softly, he said his name. "Licht? What happened? Why did you run away?"

Licht flinched a little at the voice. His heart was beating so fast that it echoed in his mind. He forced himself to look up and his eyes met Hyde's. They were full of concern and worry but Licht resented how weak he must appear to him now. Hyde sat next to him and wrapped his arm around his shoulder. Surprisingly, he didn't push him away and leaned towards him. "You wanna tell me what happened?"

"… His eyes. I remembered something when I saw them. Those eyes were staring at me as I fell over the edge. I still can't see him clearly but I remember those eyes. They glowed in the dark." Licht said and Hyde stiffened a little bit. He could understand why he panicked and ran from the shop. But his mind was racing with the admission because that meant Mikuni was the one that attacked Licht.

He knew Mikuni since he was young because he would often visit JeJe at the Alicein's manor. While Mikuni appeared calculating at times, he didn't seem like the type of person who would murder someone. Hyde couldn't think of reason Mikuni would want to hurt Licht when he didn't appear to recognize him. Questions swarmed his mind but he pushed them aside so he could focus on comforting Licht now.

"It's alright, Licht. Mikuni thinks I live somewhere else so he won't find us here. You're safe." Hyde gently stroked his hair. Licht stopped shaking slightly and he pulled away from him. Seeing his blue eyes, he suddenly felt protective. He used his scarf to wipe the tears from the corner of Licht's eyes. "It'll be okay. We'll get your memories back and then we'll go to the police about Mikuni."

"Wait until I get my memory back?" Now that the fear had passed, his anger settled in. Licht stood and walked down the porch. Determination filled his eyes when he turned to Hyde. "That man has the answers and I'm going to get them right now! I won't let that man think I'm running scared from him. I'm going back there right now and—"

"Wait, Lichtan, you can't do that." Hyde took his hand before he could run back to the shop. "If Mikuni is the one that tried to kill you, it's dangerous to go back there. He might try again. The best thing we can do right now is to get more information. We need to know why he attacked you and who you are."

"I can't just sit here when all the answers are with him!" Licht argued and Hyde could understand his frustration and impatient. Despite that, he couldn't let Licht put himself in danger. He held onto his arms to stop him from running away again. Hyde cupped his cheeks and forced him to look at him. His presence was surprisingly calming to Licht and he relaxed a little.

"Look, I'm not saying we let him get away with this. But if we rush in there, we'll look like the bad guys and Mikuni has an advantage. He might not tell you about your past or he might lie to us. Let's wait until we have all the facts. You even said that you couldn't see the person clearly so it might not be Mikuni. The only thing we know is that the person has brown eyes."

"Are you questioning me? I might not remember that night clearly but I'm sure that it was him. When I saw him, he looked so familiar… Damnit, I hate not knowing for sure!" Licht whispered under his breath. Frustrated, he pounded his fist on Hyde's chest but he let him. "Okay, let's say we do this your way. We try to get my memory back and then what?"

"I'll make sure the person that hurt you will go behind bars. You can go back home and your old life." Hyde promised. "And I'll protect you if he does come after you again."

"I can protect myself." Licht said but he had to admit that his words were reassuring. He closed his eyes and he could see the shadowy scene on top of the cliff. Everything was still blurry except for those brown eyes. If only he could remember more of that night.

* * *

"I think we should be able to get the last of the smaller heirlooms today." Mahiru spoke to Kuro as they walked up the stairs to the attic. He was glad that he was becoming accustomed to the long climb. "Then, I'll tag the larger ones for Tetsu to bring down later. After I finish some work for the appraisals, we should look for clues about what happened to Licht. I want to look at his room one more time."

"At least today is the last day you use me as a pack mule to carry a bunch of useless things. I know the Alicein is a rich and prestigious family but all those things can't be so important that a museum wants them all." Kuro groaned and rubbed his shoulders. "You still have the key to Licht's room so you can search it while I talk to Lily about who was working that night."

"That would be great! Thanks for helping me." Mahiru smiled at him again. He walked a little slower so he was standing behind Kuro. Then, he placed his hands on his shoulders and massaged them. He looked a little tired so he wanted to do something for him. At the same time, he pushed Kuro forward. "Your shoulders are really tight. Are you sleeping well at night?"

"Can't sleep when you insist on waking me up at an ungodly time." He grumbled but Mahiru only rolled his eyes. Their quips and complaints were becoming routine now and it became a morning tradition for him to lament having to wake up early. But he always did. Kuro found that he was becoming accustomed to their early mornings and he surprisingly enjoyed them.

"The morning air is good for you." Mahiru said but Kuro doubted there was any scientific proof of that. He let go of his shoulders and moved to walk beside him again. He pulled out his notebook to see which heirlooms they still needed to bring down. His attention was still on the book as he walked up the stairs to the attic so Kuro placed his arm around his waist to stop him from falling backwards.

Mahiru didn't notice until Kuro let go of him once they were in the attic. He blushed a little but Kuro didn't seem to think anything of it as he went to open the curtains. Light streamed in through the window and washed over Kuro. For a moment, he stared at his back until he forced himself to pull his gaze away.

"I'm going to start at this end of the room. Can you check that chest? There's only a few things we need to find left and then it's just tagging the larger items." Mahiru walked to one of the boxes as he gave several instructions. His eyes fell onto the bed pushed into the corner. Ever since the first day he entered the attic, he had always wondered about it.

"Kuro, are you sure none of the servants used to live here? This set up looks like someone did. I don't want to accidentally take something that belongs to them, thinking that it belongs to the Aliceins. Look, this desk has photos on it and there's books here." Mahiru pointed out but Kuro looked skeptical. He thought that Mahiru looking too much into everything because he thought someone murdered his friend.

"I don't see why anyone live up here. The attic and the east wing is considered off limits. The only reason we're allowed up here is because we're collecting the heirlooms. I think the only person that came up here was Misono. Lily told me that it would drive everyone crazy because he would disappear for hours up here to play with his imaginary brother."

"He must've been lonely in this large house because he's an only child. I'm an only child too and I had a few imaginary friends myself. Were there any kids his age here that he played with?" Mahiru asked. He was a little suspicious that Misono left the day after Licht died but he didn't want to jump to conclusions. He seemed a little haughty but Mahiru didn't think that he was a bad person.

"There was Lily, I guess. Lily liked to help take care of the butterfly garden and has worked here since he was a kid so he'll know much more than me. I didn't come to work here until we were teenagers. But I'm guessing all these books and photos are Misono's." Kuro picked up one of the framed photos. It was an old baby picture but there wasn't a layer of a dust over it.

"We should give it back to the master of the house then. From what you told me about him, he would want this back." Mahiru placed the framed picture in the box. Kuro didn't stop him even though there was something about the picture that didn't seem right to him. No had stepped foot in the attic for years yet it was free of dust and well kept.

Before he could think too much of it, Mahiru went back to searching for the heirlooms and prompted him to do the same. They carefully wrapped and placed the heirlooms into a box. From the corner of his eyes, he watched Kuro to make sure that he wasn't slaking off. He wasn't as enthusiastic as Mahiru but he could tell that he was trying at least.

They were finishing with the smaller heirlooms when Lily came into the attic with a tray of lemonade. He smiled friendly at them and set down the tray on the desk. "I brought some refreshments for you two! It can get pretty hot up here because it doesn't have proper AC. I came to check up on you but I don't have time to stay because I need to get back to Misono soon."

"We're doing fine here. The only thing left is to tie red ribbons onto the heirlooms we want Tetsu to take down." Mahiru assured him with a proud smile. "I'll get started on the appraisals as soon as I can but that will probably take much longer than brining them down. From what I've seen, I'm impressed with their collection. You must have everything from the Victorian era to the Feudal era. Oh, we also found this."

He took out the picture frame from the box and held it out to him. Lily couldn't look more shocked to see it before he smiled calmly. The change in his expression was so quick and subtle that only Kuro saw it. Mahiru merely went on. "Is this Misono? We found it on the desk."

"Yes, this is Misono." Lily answered as he looked down at the photo.

"So, he had a cowlick ever since he was a kid." Kuro swore when Mahiru lightly hit him for his comment.

"Then, this must be his mother. She was a beautiful woman, wasn't she? It's strange that this is the first time I've seen a picture of her. There are a lot of portraits hanging in the halls of Misono and his father."

"Seeing her picture reminds our master of the night she died and it upsets him so we took the pictures taken before that night. I'll give this photo back to him but can you not tell Misono about it? He may act tough but he's rather fragile." Lily sounded sincere so Mahiru nodded. "Well, I'll let you get back to your work."

* * *

Kuro knocked on Lily's office later that night but he didn't hear anyone respond. It was late so he thought that Lily was out and he used his key to open the door. He turned on the lights to see that they room was empty. He didn't know how long Lily would be gone but he didn't feel the need to rush. He came to see who was working the night Licht dies and he didn't think that Lily would be secretive about it.

He sat at Lily's desk and began to shift through the drawers. Kuro found the employee's work hours record easily enough. Even though Lily seemed to have a flighty personality, he took his job seriously and was well organized. He didn't think that he would find anything as he flipped to the date Licht died.

"It doesn't look like anything's out of place." Kuro mumbled to himself as he scanned the names. He took out his phone to take a picture of the page. None of them were working that night so he decided that it was better to wait to talk to them tomorrow. When he went to put away the large binder, he saw a photo inside the drawer. Setting the binder aside, he picked up the photo carefully.

It was the photo they found in the attic but it was taken out of its frame. He thought that Lily would return it already, knowing how important family and memories were to him. Kuro turned the photo over and saw something written behind it.  _I named him Misono. I wanted to give him a part of your name. He's the greatest gift you've given me and made me the happiest woman in the world._

Kuro placed the photo back into the drawer, careful not to bend it when he did so. He put away the binder and left the room. Mahiru said he was going to look through Licht's room again so he walked down the hall to meet him. He noticed that the lights in the library were on when he passed. He thought someone forgot to turn them off so he walked inside.

He stepped into the library's study and discovered Mahiru asleep at his desk. His head was on his laptop that was still on. He stood beside him and glanced at the scattered papers around him. Kuro guessed that he fell asleep working while he went to Lily's office and sighed. "When Lily told me to watch over you, I didn't think that included babysitting you. You're going to make yourself sick."

Kuro took off his jacket and draped it over his shoulders. He gently placed his hand beneath his head so he could move the laptop aside. There were a million pages and notes on the screen and Kuro had to admire the amount of work he done in one afternoon. It was no wonder that he was asleep and Kuro didn't know if he should wake him up or let him keep sleeping. Mahiru wouldn't be comfortable if he left him to sleep in the study but it didn't seem like he would wake up soon.

He took Mahiru's arm and gently shifted him so he could carry him on his back. Kuro stood and made sure that he wouldn't slip off his back. As he walked back to their room, he could feel his warm breath brush over his neck. Mahiru shifted on his lap and he looked back to him. His eyes fluttered open as he groaned. "So, you're awake, Sleeping Beauty. If you did that five minutes earlier, you could've saved me a lot of trouble."

"Kuro, where are we?" It took a moment for his sleepy haze to fade but then he realized that Kuro was carrying him. He didn't move to put him down even after he woke up but Mahiru didn't move as well. "I'm sorry, I must be heavy. You can let me down now."

"You're really not. Anyways, I'm used to doing things like this. I have seven siblings and not one of them know how to respect a curfew. Hugh would fall asleep in front of the television while marathoning movies." Kuro chuckled as he remembered the outrageous places he would find his siblings. "I found you sleeping in the study so I thought I'll take you back to our room."

"Wait, I fell asleep while working?" Mahiru tapped on his shoulder and Kuro slowly kneeled so he could climb off his back easier. "I need to go back and save all my work. Then I need to lock up the heirlooms in the safe. I haven't even searched Licht's room yet."

"Slow that brain down and take a break," Kuro stopped him from going back to the library. With a gentle hand on his arm, he led him down the hall to their room. "It's too late to do anything and you're already tired enough. I locked up the study and put your laptop in sleep mode before I left so you don't need to worry about that."

Mahiru wanted to argue with him more but his own yawn cut him off. He allowed Kuro to pull him forward to their room. "I guess it is late."


	8. Chapter 8

Mahiru knocked on Lily's office and waited patiently for him to answer. Beside him, Kuro didn't bother to wait and opened the door. He tried to stop him but Kuro already walked into the room. It wasn't polite to step into someone's room uninvited but Lily didn't seem to mind because he smiled when he saw them enter. "It's rare to see you up so early, Kuro."

"You roomed me with an early bird." Kuro collapsed into a chair. Despite his words, Lily couldn't hear a hint of frustration in his voice. Mahiru's brows twitched at his words though and poked his cheek to keep him from falling asleep in the chair. He watched them exchange quips and he was pleasantly surprised with how close they appeared.

"So, did you come to ask me for something?" Lily interrupted their banter and Mahiru rushed to apologize.

"I'm sorry to interrupt your work. I just came to ask you if I can borrow some books from the Alicein's library for the appraisal. You have an impressive collection of art history and it'll help me determine the values of certain heirlooms. I won't take them out of the library and I'll be careful with them." Mahiru said and then bowed politely.

"Is that all? You can borrow any book you want as long as you put it back in its right place. Hattori is very particular about those books." Lily gave him a reassuring smile. He didn't know why Mahiru always appeared tense around the staff and it seemed like Kuro was the only one he could be relaxed with.

"I told you he wouldn't mind. You made me walk all the way here when I could've fallen asleep on the library couch." Kuro yawned and Mahiru rolled his eyes in reaction. He thanked Lily and gestured for Kuro to stand. Before they left, Lily stopped them quickly.

"I want to ask something of you two first. Misono often reads in the library because he enjoys listening to Licht play. Can you not tell Misono about his… death? If he asks where he is, tell him that Licht has returned home. It would upset him if he learned about it so soon after he came home. I already talked to the rest of the staff about this." Lily said.

Mahiru bit his lip but force himself to nod in answer. It was the best he could do. He knew that he might say the wrong thing out of anger if he spoke. His best friend was dead but no one in the mansion seemed to care. In fact, it seemed like they all refused to acknowledge his death. Someone in the house had to know the truth. Somehow, the family kept the papers and the police at bay and that angered him more because it felt like he was chasing a ghost by himself.

"Mahiru, we should go and let Lily get back to his work." He felt a firm hand on his shoulder and turned to see Kuro. The tension left his body when he remembered that he wasn't alone. Even though Kuro wasn't convinced that someone killed Licht, he agreed to help him find the truth. Gently, Kuro guided him out of the room. "Bye, Lily."

Once he closed the door behind him, Kuro studied Mahiru's face. He closed his brown eyes but Kuro could tell that he was a little upset from his body language. Then he took a deep breath and opened his eyes. "Well, we can't waste the morning. Let's go, Kuro. I didn't get to search Licht's room last night and I'm going to be busy with research tonight so we should do that now."

Kuro could see determination fill his eyes as he moved forward. He had to admire his fortitude and fell into step next to him. "When do you think we'll be able to talk to Misono about Licht? Lily said he liked to listen to him play so maybe they were close and he knows something."

"Knowing this household, it'll probably be never. The people here avoid telling him anything that might make him distraught." Mahiru stopped walking and gawked at him, shocked by his answer. Misono had to be the same age as him and an adult so there shouldn't be a reason to protect him from reality and life. "Anyways, Misono and Licht weren't that close so you might not learn anything useful."

"Licht always had a hard time making friends, even in high school. I remember all the girls would fawn over him because of his looks. He was attractive but the only thing he ever loved was his piano." There was a sad shadow in his eyes as he reminisced and Kuro wondered if there was something more to their relationship. Mahiru only called Licht his friend but…

Kuro quickly shook his head of the thought. It shouldn't matter to him what Mahiru's relationship with Licht was but he found himself feeling a little jealous. "You two must be close if you knew each other since high school. I guess that's why you're doing all this for him."

"Licht and I were close but we weren't dating or anything like that." Mahiru assured him when he heard the question underlying his words. He didn't know why he felt the need to correct his assumption and Kuro didn't know why he felt relieved. They glanced at each other and their eyes met for a second before they turned away awkwardly.

"People don't need to be in a romantic relationship to be close. Licht is a great guy but he's not my type."

"What is your type?" Kuro asked before he could stop himself. He blushed and couldn't bring himself to face Mahiru's reaction. From the corner of his eyes, he saw that Mahiru was blushing too. Kuro wondered why he asked such a pointless question. Mahiru only came for the appraisal job and to find Licht's killer. Once that was over, he would return to Tokyo. "Forget I asked. We need to go search Licht's room."

"Okay," Mahiru nodded and continued down the hall. Honestly, he didn't think about a relationship a lot because he worked so much. He watched Kuro's broad back as he walked and thought over his question.

* * *

"I already tried to search his room once but I didn't find anything. I didn't have much time to search thoroughly then. Hopefully, we'll be able to find something now that there's two of us." Mahiru closed the curtains so none of the guards outside would see them searching Licht's room. They would most likely have questions that Mahiru couldn't answer.

"Didn't you see a shadow and ran out of the room screaming?" Kuro chuckled at the memory as he knelt to open a drawer. Mahiru took the pillow and threw it at his back but it didn't affect him much. "Hey, don't attack the person that's helping you. You're so violent sometimes."

The night he stayed in Licht's room, he thought he saw someone outside the window. He wanted to believe Kuro's explanation that it was a guard but the more he thought about it, the less likely it seemed. A guard on patrol would've had a flashlight with him. Also, the shadow moved awkwardly as if the person was trying to not be seen. If only he could've seen the person clearly that night.

"So, what are we looking for exactly?" Kuro ran his hand over the bottom of the drawer but there didn't seem to be a hidden compartment. He wasn't confident that they would find anything because they sent all of Licht's belongings to his family and the maids cleaned the room thoroughly.

"Anything that's out of place. Maybe we'll find something that will tell us why someone would want to kill Licht. He would've told me if he wasn't getting along with someone. He was never shy about telling people how he felt about them. Maybe he knew or had something that made him a target without him knowing. I don't know but we might know once we see it."

Mahiru knew that he was grasping at straws and it wouldn't be easy to find something after so much time had passed. They weren't professionals either so they didn't know the first thing about searching for clues aside from what they saw in fiction. He wondered if Licht even knew that someone was after him. Then a thought came to him and his brows furrowed.

"Licht wouldn't have gone to the cliff alone and so late at night. The person had to be someone he knows and trusted. He didn't mention anyone in particular he considered a close friend." He couldn't guess why anyone would try to kill Licht so he didn't know what to look for. Mahiru opened the closet with a heavy sigh. "I wish I asked him more when we talked."

"You couldn't have known." Kuro said softly as he closed the drawer before he walked to his side. The closet was empty but he didn't expect anything more. "If you want, I can ask the maids if they found anything when they were cleaning out the room. It's a longshot but we might get lucky. I don't know how to ask them without sounding weird though."

His words brought a small smile onto Mahiru's lips. "I'll call his parents and see if they were sent anything that didn't belong to him. We really need to talk to the girl that said she saw Licht jump. Can you drive me to see her when you're free?"

"Alright. I should have some time this weekend. I'll see if we can borrow a car from—" They both jumped when the door opened. Neither of them knew how they would explain why they were in an unoccupied room. Before Mahiru could react, Kuro took his arm and pulled him into the closet. He closed the door partially and left only enough space for him to look into the room.

They saw Tetsu enter the room and held their breath. Mahiru's heart was beating loudly and he hoped that Tetsu couldn't hear it. His back was pressed against Kuro's chest and he could feel his hot breath fan his ear. Kuro held his hand against his mouth and watched Tetsu open the window. Why would he enter an unoccupied room? Did he hear what they were discussing?

He walked to the middle of the room and took out his phone. Kuro swore when his phone rang and Tetsu turned towards them. His mind was racing and he hoped that Tetsu wouldn't ask why they were in the room. Mahiru suddenly pushed open the closet door and declared. "Kuro, I told you we were going to get caught. This is the last time I'm letting you talk me into making out with you in some random room."

"What?" Kuro was so shocked that he stood up too quickly and hit his head on the shelf. He swore and rubbed his head. Of all the excuses Mahiru could've given, why did he have to give that one? Mahiru's cheeks were burning as he faced Tetsu.

"Please don't tell Lily or anyone about this." Mahiru was relieved when Tetsu nodded. It seemed like he believed the outrageous lie. "I'm sorry, Tetsu, you were looking for us."

"I wanted to ask you two a question but you weren't in the library. I was walking down the hall when I heard voices from this room. The door was unlocked. Oh yeah, I came here because I think one of the antiques in the attic is broken." Tetsu said. "I was hoping that you two will know how to fix it."

"Wait, why didn't you tell us that from the start?" Mahiru screamed and rushed out of the room. "Hurry it up, Kuro."

"I'll be there in a minute." Kuro called after him. He knelt down and picked up a key he saw glinting on the ground. It must've fallen off the shelf when he hit his head. He turned it between his fingers and his brows furrowed. He didn't recognize the key but it must've belonged to the Alicein because it had their crest. He walked to the door and tried to use the key but it didn't fit which worried Kuro more.

The household was careful with its keys and only a few select people were trusted with them. Licht shouldn't have a key aside from the one to his room. He wondered what door the key opened. Then he heard Mahiru called his name again and pocketed the key before going after him.

* * *

"I think this piano is broken. I pushed it so I could lift the grandfather clock and heard something inside." Tetsu explained and Mahiru was glad that one of the heirlooms wasn't damaged. On the other hand, he didn't know a single thing about pianos or how to fix one. Effortlessly, Tetsu lifted the upright piano slightly and he could hear something clang inside.

"Maybe one of the parts inside broke off. If that's the case, all we need is to find a replacement part." Kuro assured them when Tetsu placed the piano on the ground again. He had to wince at how casually Tetsu treated the piano even if it was a simple, upright piano. "I'll see what it might be and tell Lily. This thing is pretty old so he won't be angry."

Kuro opened the top cover and peered into the piano. He shined his flashlight into the piano and saw something gold among the keys. His brows furrowed and he lifted the front cover to see what it was. A pocket watch tumbled onto the keys and Kuro wondered how a pocket watch could've found its way into the piano. Mahiru took the pocket watch carefully into his hands.

"This is beautiful. Not many people own these anymore but this design is more modern than something you'll find with the open face design popular in the 1900s. I'll have to see the watch movement to guess when it was made." Mahiru tried to open the cover but it was jammed close. "Kuro, do you think the Alicein will mind if I hold onto this for a while? I'll like to fix this."

"I don't see why they wouldn't want you to fix that old thing. I'll tell Lily." Kuro shrugged. Then he closed the piano and played a short chord. "It seems like this piano is fine now so don't worry, Tetsu. You need any help bringing these junks down?"

"They're not junk!" Mahiru punched his arm lightly and glared at him. "But it's a good idea to help Tetsu because we're already here. Kuro, help me carry that oak desk."

"Again, with the orders? You really like working me to death." Kuro groaned but walked to his side. His sharp ears heard a small thump and he looked around the room. It didn't seem like Tetsu or Mahiru made the noise so he wondered if one of the boxes fell. He didn't think much of the sound and went to help Mahiru. "You sure you don't want to let Tetsu do this? This table is heavy."

"Don't think you can get out of this so easily."


	9. Chapter 9

"Can you push the ladder a little to the right?" Mahiru called down to Kuro. He nodded up at him and pushed the library ladder as smoothly as he could for Mahiru. He was standing at the top of the ladder while balancing books in one arm and Kuro could easily see him falling. But Mahiru didn't seem to be as worried Kuro was as he took another book out of the shelf.

The Alicein's mansion had an impressive library and the books were useful for his appraisals. Mahiru had to admit that he also wanted to read them because he knew that he might not have the chance to read such rare books again. Once he was finished with the appraisals and he found the man that killed Licht, he would return home to Tokyo.

The thought of leaving the manor made him sadder than he would be and he sighed. After a few weeks, he did grow fond of the residents. At first, he was suspicious of them but he was grateful for the few friends he made in the house. With that thought, Mahiru looked down at Kuro who was waiting at the bottom of the ladder. He knew that everything would've been more difficult without Kuro.

Mahiru wondered if he should do something to thank him for all the help he was giving him. He thought over a few things he could do as he climbed down the steps. His foot slipped on the last bar and he felt himself falling backwards. Kuro quickly moved behind him and wrapped his arms around him to catch him. "Why are you always tripping over yourself when I'm around?"

"I'm not as clumsy as you're making me out to be so don't say stuff like that." Mahiru blushed as he moved out of his arms. He couldn't admit that he missed the step because he was thinking of him and became distracted. "Thank you for catching me though. I'm just grateful that I didn't drop these books. I don't have the money to replace them if they get damaged."

"They're just a bunch of paper and ink so how much can they cost?" Kuro took one from the pile. He flipped through the book and skimmed the pictures but he didn't find anything special in them. On the other hand, Mahiru almost had a heart attack at the careless way he handled the book. Mahiru moved all of his books into one arm and tried to take the book back from Kuro with his free hand.

"You're going to bend the pages, Kuro! They're rare books— and special editions on top of that— so they cost more than my university texts. Give them back." Mahiru stood on his toes to take back the book when Kuro held the book over their heads. He had to chuckle at the glare Mahiru gave him because he knew that he wouldn't hurt him.

So, Kuro was taken aback when Mahiru stomped on his foot and took the book back as he recoiled in pain. Mahiru huffed and went to the desk to read the books. He mumbled curses at Kuro beneath his breath. "You're a grown man, Kuro. Don't tease people for their height as if we're still in school. I'm going to do much worse if you try teasing me like that again."

"That was a little much, you know?" Kuro leaned against the desk and scanned the papers and notebooks littering the desk. He was impressed with the amount of work Mahiru did in such a short time since they brought down all the heirlooms. It was easy to see how diligent and dedicated Mahiru was towards his work. But Kuro had to worry about the bags under his eyes.

"How about we take a break tonight? We can go downtown to visit our local antique dealer." Kuro took a spare chair and sat next to him. He ignored his suggestion and continued to make notes. They were planning to speak with the other guards about the night Licht jumped that afternoon so he knew that it would be difficult to convince Mahiru to take a break.

"I'm not going to outsource my work to an antique dealer. The Alicein hired me to do a job and, simply put, I can't accept their money knowing that I didn't do the job to the best of my ability. Anyways, antique dealers aren't the most reliable appraisers." Mahiru told him.

"You just look tired." Kuro mumbled and Mahiru could hear the concern in his voice. He was tired juggling his appraisal work and trying to find who killed Licht but he couldn't take a break from either. "Taking a break is good for your health. Haven't you just taken an afternoon for yourself, even before you came to the manor."

"When that day comes, I'll tell you." Mahiru sighed as he put down the photograph. He had to grow up early in life after his mother died and he was always occupied with work. If he hadn't been so busy and spoken with Licht more, like a friend should've, he might've known more about his time in the manor. "We'll go interview the guards after I see which book is most relevant for each heirloom."

He watched Mahiru organize the cluttered desk into neat piles. Once he was finished, he stood and opened the door for Kuro. "Do you think we should have a recorder when we talk to the guards on duty or do you think that's too suspicious? I don't want to make Licht's murderer suspicious."

"We don't know if Licht was murdered or if he just fell on accident." Kuro didn't want to believe that anyone in the manor was a killer. He grew up with most of the residents and they were important to him. Mahiru frowned up at him and he didn't look open minded about any other possibility. "You can use your phone to record our conversation but don't be too obvious."

As they walked out of the office, Mahiru noticed Misono and Lily in the library. He wanted to speak to him about Licht but he remembered his conversation with Lily and didn't know how to approach him. He was thankful when Kuro called out to them. "Hey, shorty. Mahiru took some books from the library and put them in the office for his work. So, if you're looking for a one, look in there."

Kuro swore when Mahiru lightly kicked his leg "What did I say about teasing people and their height? You never listen to me."

"If I wanted a housewife to lecture me, I would've gotten married. I'm single for a reason." He said in a dry tone but he had a small smile. Then he turned to Misono. "Mahiru's pretty smart so you two might get along. You can talk about books or something and give me a break from listening to him go on and on about time periods and art history."

"You have been saying that you never have anyone to talk to about those things. You can make a new friend!" Lily knew that it was rare for Misono to meet new people and make close friends so he wanted to encourage him.

"How many times do I have to tell you to stop treating me like I'm a child?" Misono's cheeks were a little red. While he loved Lily like a brother, he wished that he would stop fretting over him. But he would like to have a friend that he could discuss things with. "If you do want to talk, I like to read in the garden. You can usually find me out there."

"Kuro told me that you liked to read in the library and listen to Licht play his piano. Everyone tells me that he's talented and I wish I could've heard him play before he… left. Were you two close?" Mahiru asked and ignored Lily's shocked expression. He wanted to find Licht's killer and he thought that it was better to be straightforward.

"We weren't close friends or anything like that. We didn't have much in common to talk about." Misono shrugged and thought back to the pianist. "His playing was wonderful and he would talk about playing for a large audience one day. He would play everyday. I remember he would complain every time it was curfew and he would have to stop playing."

"It was hard to pull him away from that piano. I had to call Tetsu to drag him to his room sometimes. He eventually stopped making a fuss whenever curfew came around." Lily chuckled. Mahiru could easily imagine the scene and smiled but Kuro could see how strained it was. He subtly rubbed Mahiru's back and he hoped that Lily wouldn't notice the small action.

"He stopped making a scene every night because he was sneaking out to play the piano after curfew." Misono said in an even tone. "Licht made me promise not to tell any of you but there's no harm now that he returned home. He found out about the piano in the attic. He could play there every night without people knowing because no one goes there and it's pretty secluded."

"He did?" Kuro couldn't see Licht playing the small upright piano in the attic. Before he could ask him anything else, Misono's phone rang. He sighed as he stood.

"That's my father. He just came home and he wants to see me in his office. I'll be reading in the garden afterwards if you want to talk, Mahiru. I visited some interesting exhibits so it would be nice to talk to someone about them." Misono waved to them as he left the library with Lily.

* * *

"Hey, DoDo, can I ask you something?" Kuro approached the guard as he stepped out of his car. He knew that Mahiru was nearby and listening to their conversation so he tried to speak loud enough for him to hear. "I forgot to write my report for April 14th and Lily's going to be on my ass about it so can you help me with it? You were on duty that night. Do you remember anything from that night?"

"Let's see, April 14th… I don't remember much from that night. It's been three weeks now so I don't know how much I can help you. You really procrastinated until now?" DoDo gave him a weary smile because Kuro was famous for his lazy attitude. It was a wonder that he was the head of the guards, considering his personality. "It was pretty quiet."

"You didn't run into Licht? That Friday was the day he… jumped." Kuro probed and saw a shadow cross DoDo's face. "I don't know how to explain that none of us saw him before he went to the cliff in my report. With the number of people patrolling, it would've been difficult for him to leave without one of us noticing him. Did one of the staff tell you they say something?"

"Didn't the police already write a report about this?" DoDo looked down at the ground. There was an awkward silence between them as he tried to think of an answer. Kuro knew that it was an uncomfortable topic but he could tell that DoDo was keeping something from him. "If he was planning on jumping for a while, he would've thought to avoid us."

"He didn't stay with us long enough to know our patrol patterns so how could he avoid us as well as he did? Some things aren't adding up for me." Kuro shrugged. "He was an ordinary person and didn't seem like the type to do something like that. If you didn't see him leave, did you see anything strange like—"

"I just remembered that I need to pick up something for Mr. Alicein! I'll talk to you later, Kuro." DoDo suddenly ended the conversation and ran to his car. He watched him leave before he turned to Mahiru. He stepped out from behind the wall and he looked frustrated but Kuro understood his expression. Every guard they spoke to left as abruptly as DoDo did.

"Well, that was a waste." Mahiru crossed his arms. "Who is the next person that we need to talk to?"

"I think that's enough for today." There were still a few they had to talk to but the sun was already setting and Kuro thought that it would be best to take a break. He knew full well that Mahiru would likely stay up late for his appraisals. "How about we take a break I was talking about earlier?"

"But…"

Mahiru began to protest but Kuro lightly poked his forehead. "You're going to fry that brain of yours. Can't do much of anything if that happens and you don't want to rely on me to do work. You've been cooped up in this mansion so how about we head into town."

"Are you asking me out on a date?" Kuro blushed when he realized how his words must've sounded. Seeing his face become flushed, Mahiru laughed good-naturedly. Mahiru had to admit that he was feeling a little stress and claustrophobic in that manor. He thought that it was sweet of Kuro to think of him. "I'm just teasing you, Kuro. It sounds like a fun idea but I think it's better for us to stay in. I need to do more work on my appraisals so I don't want to stay out late."

"I guess you're right. I wouldn't know where to go or places you might like. I haven't gone into town for a while because the mansion has pretty much everything we need here." Kuro told him. He knew that Hyde had returned to town and reminded himself that he should visit his brother while he still could. "But you need to relax tonight."

* * *

"How are you this good at scrabble?" Mahiru grumbled as he added up the bonuses Kuro received. They found the old board game in the attic and he thought playing the simple game would be a good compromise for a relaxing break. Kuro suggested they play a game but Mahiru didn't enjoy video games. "A security guard that plays piano and scrabble. You're full of surprises."

"It's not that impressive. You pick up a lot of things when you grow up in a family made up of colourful characters. Hugh is the scrabble champion in our household. We would play whenever the power went out." Kuro smiled a little as he thought back to those simpler times. "There was eight of us so we would form teams of two. I teamed with Hugh so I wouldn't have to come up with too many words. I didn't really care about who won in the end."

"You were this unmotivated even when you were a kid?" He could easily imagine a younger Kuro lounging in front of the board game like he was now. Kuro was laying on his side and fiddling with the lettered blocks in front of him. He looked relaxed and Mahiru was thankful that he suggested they take a break. "Reincarnation. That should be 17 points with the 'e' triple letter tile."

"Thanks for the 'a'. Maximum. With the double word multiplier and the bingo bonus, I get 90 points. I should've put money on this." Kuro chuckled when he saw Mahiru angrily scribbled the number onto the chart. He wasn't a competitive person but he thought Mahiru's reaction was amusing. When Mahiru pouted at him, he poked his forehead gently. "You're a smart guy but you're overthinking this game."

"I don't over think things. I'll have you know that keeping things simple is my philosophy." Mahiru said proudly but Kuro didn't look convinced by his words. He laid down on his stomach and sorted through his tiles and asked, "Is there something you want after this game? I was thinking that I should give you something to thank you for all the help you're giving me."

"You don't need to do anything special for me." Kuro shrugged. He didn't think he was doing anything that warrant Mahiru giving him a reward. He decided to help him to defend his friends but he found that he wanted to help Mahiru for a different reason now. He could see how much Licht's death was affecting him and he hoped that finding answers would help him move forward.

Mahiru rose and leaned over Kuro. "Are you sure there's nothing I can do for you?"

Kuro rolled onto his back to face Mahiru and realized how close they were. Even in the dim lighting of the attic, he could count the different shades of brown in his eyes. Mahiru didn't seem to realize how close they were as he moved closer to him. "Maybe I can buy you something after we go visit that girl that saw Licht jump. I know it's not much but let me do something."

"You can help me put away this game." Kuro quickly sat up and moved away from him. He could feel his heart skipping but he ignored the feeling. He shoved the board into its box while Mahiru looked confused.

"The game wasn't over, Kuro! At least put the tiles into a bag so we won't lose any of them." Mahiru argued and helped him collect the pieces. He was losing by a large margin so it was unlikely that he could win but he was having fun playing with him. With a sigh, he returned the game to where he found it on the shelf. Seeing the large collection of games, he mused. "Wouldn't it be better to store these games in the library? It'll be a waste to leave them here because no one comes up here."

"I guess. The younger workers that the Alicein adopted might enjoy them." Kuro remembered all the nights his family would spend playing. "These belong to Misono but he doesn't play much aside from chess now. He would play these with his imaginary brother because he didn't any friends to play with. Misono and Lily are pretty close because of that."

"We should take them down. I'm sure they wouldn't mind. It'll be a good way to break the ice with Misono too." He took a large stack of board games and gave them to Kuro. Mahiru took another pile and carried it down the stairs. Kuro followed him and he was a little surprised that he didn't complain or argue. "What? No snide remark, Kuro?"

"I guess you used me as a pack mule so much that I'm just accustomed to it now. You want me to complain?" Kuro playfully nudged him with his shoulder as they walked. Then he spoke in an exaggerated voice. "So troublesome, Mahiru. Why must you overwork this poor man?"

"That's the Kuro I know," Mahiru laughed. They talked as they walked to the library. When they stopped in front of the door, he said. "It's pretty late. You can head to bed first after we put these games away. I'm going to be working on the appraisals and you'll probably be bored watching me doing nothing. I should be back in bed by eleven so you don't need to worry about me over working myself. Anyways—"

Mahiru trailed off when they walked into the library. The door to his office was slightly opened and light filtered through the thin opening. He thought he had closed the door when he left. He wondered if Misono took a book from the office and forgot to turn off the light. He put down the board games on the couch and went to his office. As he walked closer to his office, he could hear paper shuffling inside.

Before he could call out to the person inside, Kuro covered his mouth. He gestured for him to stay silent and Mahiru nodded. Kuro gently pushed him behind him and opened the door slowly. He swore when he saw a man in black looking through Mahiru's desk. He was obviously a thief but Kuro didn't now how he could enter the mansion without triggering its security system.

"Troublesome." Kuro clicked his tongue as he opened the door fully. The man looked up sharply at him but his dark mask hid his expression. He immediately climbed out the window and Kuro cursed. He started to chase after the thief and followed him out the window. Kuro jerked to a stop when Mahiru caught his arm. When he looked back to him, he could see his worried expression.

"You can't go after him. What if he has a gun? We should alert the guards on duty." Mahiru said.

"I am a guard on duty." Kuro pulled away from him. He could still feel Mahiru's concerned eyes on him and sighed. He turned back and assured him. "This is my job so don't worry about me. Just check on the heirlooms and find DoDo or any other guard. I'll be back so don't make that face."

Mahiru watched him chase after the thief but he couldn't let him go alone. So, he climbed through the window and followed him.


	10. Chapter 10

Kuro ran after the man, inwardly cursing the entire time. The man was tall and had long strides but Kuro was able to easily keep up with him. Usually he would be able to corner the man in the manor's complicated garden. But the thief easily maneuvered through the pathways, as if he already knew the layout of the manor. That fact led to a lot of implication but not one of them was good.

"And Lily said that I wouldn't have to work while watching over Mahiru. Can't deal." He grumbled to himself as he tried to predict where the man would run next so he could cut him off. It was his job to catch intruders but that wasn't the main reason he was chasing the man fervently. Kuro remembered the nights Mahiru stayed up with the heirlooms. If the thief did steal something, it would upset Mahiru and all of his work would be wasted.

His eyes narrowed when the man ran to the eastern wing. Everyone, including Misono, was forbidden from entering the wing but Kuro decided that catching a thief would take president over that rule. The man climbed through an opened window easily because of his lanky form. Kuro was agile and he was able to follow him through the window without falling behind.

He had never been in the eastern wing before and he was certain no one had entered the building in years from the amount of dust there was. He had to cough and waved away the dust surrounding him. Kuro heard hasty footsteps and he knew that it must've belonged to the thief. He debated if he should search for a light switch or continue to chase the man in the dark. He could see well enough with the moonlight filtering through the window so he followed the footsteps down the hall.

"Troublesome," Kuro said when he saw the man disappeared around the corner. As he turned the corner, he noticed something glint in dark. He swore when he realized that it was a knife and threw up his hand to defend himself. He was taken aback when someone shoved him aside and he tumbled to the ground. A warm weight landed on top of him and he grunted.

Kuro pushed himself up and saw the man run out the front door. At the same time, he heard someone run deeper into the building. There were two people? He heard a groan and looked down at Mahiru on his lap. He realized that he must've been the one that pushed him. Even in the dark, he could see Mahiru grimace as he sat up. He was holding his arm and worry tightened Kuro's chest.

"Did the knife hurt you?" He asked quickly and Mahiru nodded. Before Mahiru could reassure him that the cut wasn't deep, Kuro yelled. "I told you to get DoDo and stay put! You must be the most troublesome and reckless man I've ever met. You're going to be the death of me, I swear. I know you love your job but a bunch of junk isn't worth running after an armed thief."

"Is that what you think?" Mahiru huffed and his brows furrowed, angry with his assumption. "I ran after you two because I was worried about  _you_ , Kuro. You should be thankful that I did or else you would be the one hurt by that knife. A 'thank you' would be more appropriate in this moment than yelling at me."

"I wouldn't have been hurt. This is my job and I've chased down far more dangerous men. I've been trained to deal with people like him, unlike you, and I could've taken care of myself. You didn't need to get yourself hurt protecting me." Kuro retorted but Mahiru's expression told him he wasn't through arguing. There was a sliver of pain in Mahiru's eyes and the anger Kuro felt ebbed away. "Lets just go back."

"Are you two finished arguing like an old married couple?" They both looked up to see Lily peek his head into the front door. He wondered how long Lily had been listening to them. Knowing that he had an audience, Mahiru blushed at his own behaviour and made more space between him and Kuro. He knew that he should've been more professional and let Kuro do his job but he couldn't leave Kuro alone.

"We should get you to Johannes to patch you up." Kuro wrapped his arm around Mahiru's waist to help him up. He was glad to see that there wasn't blood on his sleeve, which meant the cut wasn't deep. When Mahiru said that he was hurt, he imagined the worst and fear took over. Kuro shook those feelings from his head and turned to Lily, "There was a thief."

"I know. DoDo saw you two chasing him and the other guards are going after him right now. We need to leave immediately." Lily moved behind him and tried to quickly usher them out of the wing. Even though he had an easy smile, Kuro could tell that Lily was nervous about something. He wanted to tell him about the person that ran deeper into the house but Lily interrupted him. "You know you can't enter this wing."

"Simply thinking, Kuro was doing his job when he chased the man into the building. You can't blame him for that or punish him." Mahiru said to defend his actions. Lily didn't say anything response and merely rushed them out of the door. He heaved a breath of relief once they weren't inside anymore and locked the door to the east wing. "I'll check on DoDo while you take Mahiru to the infirmary."

Lily waved to them away and Kuro sighed. He didn't know why his brother was behaving strangely but he couldn't ask him with Mahiru present. He decided that it would be best to talk to him alone after they caught the thief. With an arm around Mahiru's waist, Kuro led him back to the manor.

* * *

"I told you I was okay. See, it's barely a scratch." Mahiru insisted as Kuro wrapped his upper arm with a bandage. Johannes, the Alicein's on call doctor, wasn't in the infirmary so Mahiru tried to wrap it himself. When Kuro saw him struggling with the bandage so he sat next to him and helped him. His hands were a little awkward but Mahiru knew that he was trying his best.

"Did your guard training not include first aid?" He asked with a light laugh.

"It did but that was a long time ago. I became a guard right after high school and I pretty much forgot everything from that. I didn't know what I wanted to do after high school and there was a job opening. Lily looked happy working here." Kuro shrugged. There wasn't any judgement in his brown eyes when he heard that. He only patted his hand and said.

"Well, for your first time bandaging someone in so long, you did a pretty good job." Mahiru tried to pull his shirt over his head but he winced. It wasn't that painful but the cut stung every time he lifted his arm. Kuro noticed a hint of discomfort in his expression and took off his jack. He placed it around Mahiru's shoulders and helped his arms through the sleeves.

"You can wear that until we get you a buttoned shirt. That should be easier for you to change into. After a night's rest, you'd feel better though." He said and Mahiru wondered if he knew that from experience. Kuro leaned against the wall and asked, "When you were following me, did you someone else? I think that thief had someone helping them. The thief knew the layout of the house and to run into the east wing. Also, I thought I heard a second person in the east wing."

"I didn't see anyone else. Everything was happening so fast that it was a blur for me." Mahiru admitted. He was impressed with how observant Kuro was. He noticed those small things even while he was focused on catching the thief. "I was really surprised with how fast you're able to run because you like to laze around so much."

"I had a lot of practise running while I was in high school."

"Were you in track?" Mahiru asked. He was in track when he was in high school as well and he was a little excited to know that they had something in common.

"Nope, I was running from my responsibilities." Kuro laughed when Mahiru rolled his eyes. But, in the end, they were laughing together. "Honestly, my siblings kept me active no matter how much I tried to avoid exercise. There were eight of us all together and they needed me to make equal teams. Still, all of them together was easier to handle than you."

"I'm not that bad." Mahiru pouted and Kuro gestured to his arm as a silent rebuttal. "I really was worried about you, Kuro, but I guess I was being reckless."

"You did save me though. I'm sorry for yelling at you like that. It's not everyday someone put themselves in danger to protect me." Kuro knew that he should apologize. He reacted poorly when he yelled at him but the worry he felt blinded him. "But what about the heirlooms? Did you find anything missing before you chased after me?"

"I didn't really check. I locked up the safe and the room before going out the window after you. We should really go out and make sure nothing's missing." He shot to his feet and made his way down the hall. Kuro would rather see Mahiru rest and let himself heal. But he knew that he was once again focused on the heirlooms, Kuro could only follow him.

Still, he tried to dissuade him. "We can just wait for Lily to come back with the thief. Now that DoDo and the other guards are going after him, I doubt that he'll get away."

"But I need to make sure for myself. They're my responsibility and my job. Put simply, I won't be able to rest comfortably until I know for sure." Mahiru pointed out and he went to the library.

He unlocked the door and went to check on the safe. While he counted the heirlooms, Kuro sat at the desk and waited for him to finish. He watched Mahiru's face as he worked and how easily his expression was to read. The concentration and purpose in his warm eyes was strangely captivating in a way he couldn't describe. Brown eyes weren't unique but Mahiru's were beautiful.

"This is strange." Mahiru muttered, pulling Kuro out of his thoughts. "He didn't take a single thing, not a ring or a necklace. The safe was opened when we came inside but he didn't take anything from it."

"Maybe we just came back before he could do anything." He suggested but Mahiru didn't looked convinced by his answer. Kuro stood from his seat and massaged his thumb over the tension in his temple. "Look, nothing's missing so don't worry any more than you need to. You're already stressed out enough with Licht. Let Lily and the guards deal with him."

"It's just strange to me. What could he want from my study that's more valuable than these heirlooms. He was leaning over my desk when we came in." Mahiru thumbed through his notebook but he couldn't think of anything worth stealing. "Maybe I am overthinking this."

"I could've told you that. I'm pretty sure I did but you just overthink things like you always do." Kuro pointed out and leaned against the desk. He saw how tired Mahiru was so he let him use the chair. "If that's done, can we go to bed? You look ready to fall over."

"I guess I am pretty tired." Mahiru yawned. The door opened and a man he hadn't met yet walked into the room. He saw the saw how Kuro stood straighter and did the same. Kuro was usually casually with the other workers so he assumed the older man was someone important. He noticed Mitsuki follow the man into the room.

"Mahiru, this is Mr. Alicein. He wanted to talk to you after I told him about what happened." His back straightened at Mitsuki's words. He became more tensed when she added, "The thief escaped."

"I'm very sorry that this happened when you entrusted me with your heirlooms. I'll make sure that this will never happen again." Mahiru bowed repeatedly, anxious that he would be fired. If he was forced to leave, he couldn't search for Licht's killer. He felt a hand on his shoulder and recognized that it was Kuro's.

"We just checked and none of the heirlooms were stolen. No harm, no foul." He said. "Mahiru has been working hard and I doubt you'd find someone as skilled as him."

"I came here because you two entered the east wing." Mr. Alicein interrupted them. He gestured for Mitsuki to hand them several forms. "There are important documents there that are rather sensitive. I understand that you were chasing a thief so I won't discipline you two this time but I don't want a repeat of this. You two must also write separate reports about tonight."

"Okay." Mahiru took the form and waited until they left before he spoke again. "Thank goodness I wasn't fired. I understand why we need to write a report but I didn't think it would be so important that the head of the house wanted to come and tell us."

"Everyone in this house has been touchy about that building. A powerful family like the Alicein is bound to have a few things they want to keep confidential." He shrugged. "I was hoping to get some rest after running so much but we have to fill this out."

"… He never said when we needed to finish it." Kuro raised a brow at him and Mahiru smiled secretively. "We can finish this tomorrow. It's really late and we're both tired. You must be rubbing off on me. I won't tell anyone that you procrastinated if you don't tell on me. But we're getting up early to write this report."

"I was starting to fall in love until you said you were going to wake me up early." His voice was sarcastic but a smile played on his lips. Kuro stood and opened the door for Mahiru.

* * *

Hyde couldn't concentrate on the words in front of him because his mind kept wandering to the angel sleeping in his room. He thought he would be able to focus on his work after Licht fell asleep but questions kept swimming around his mind. He said that he recognized Mikuni from that night but why would he attack him? When they went to his antic shop, he didn't behave strangely around Licht. No matter how many questions he had, he was sure Licht had more.

"What are you doing up so late, Shit Rat?" In the doorway was Licht with his blanket draped around him. He hadn't heard him enter the living room where he was working but he knew that he was agitated from his expression. Like he thought, Licht said: "I can't sleep while you're typing so loud."

"And here I thought I was being kind by letting you use my room and working out here. But I'm almost done. My back hurts from sleeping on this lumpy couch. Unless you're here to trade, go back to sleep. It's almost midnight." Hyde pointed to the clock. He didn't return to the room though. Licht slumped onto the couch next to him and muttered something beneath his breath.

While Licht was quick to anger, Hyde doubted that he came out to yell at him for something as inconsequential as his typing. He appeared more solemn than irritated and Hyde wondered what was going through his mind. He placed his laptop on the coffee table in front of him and shift closer to him. "You can't sleep, Angel Cakes?"

"Do you have wax in your ears? I said that you were typing so loud that I couldn't sleep." Licht bundled himself in the warm blanket and propped his head in his hand. His body felt heavy and he was tired but he couldn't sleep. Hyde knew that questions were most likely keeping him up and shifted closer to him.

"It doesn't look like either of us are going to sleep any time soon. Want to throw on a movie? I can make us some snacks to eat as well." Hyde suggested. He pulled the laptop closer to him so he could search for a movie to watch. "What kind of movies are you into?"

"Stop typing. My head feels like it's going to explode every time I hear you type." Licht tightened his hands in the blanket. Usually, he wasn't affected by the rhythmic ticking but he found it unbearable now. The sound combined with the darkness edged a memory to the surface but it was still out of his reach.

He glanced at Hyde's laptop in the corner of his eyes out of curiosity. "What are you doing?"

"I do have a job, you know? I'm a translator. I came home for a short vacation but I thought I could get some work done tonight. Shakespeare is already hard enough but try translating it to Japanese or German." A wry smile appeared on his face. Licht looked a little skeptical so Hyde said, " _Ich habe einen Schatz und er trägt dein Namen. So wunderschön und wertvoll, mein Engel._ "

"I'm an angel but I'm not your angel." Licht shot back with a blush. They gasped, both surprised that he could understand him. He closed his eyes and familiar words echoed in his mind. " _Mein Engel…_  My mother would call me that…"

"Lichtan?" He shook his head but then he hugged himself as he trembled. Hyde didn't know if he would let him comfort him but he wrapped his arm around his shoulders. He knew that he was remembering something and rubbed his back. "What is it? If you remember your mother, maybe we can find her and learn more about you. This is good. She's German?"

"French." Licht corrected but he was struggling to remember more. His nails dug into his arms, frustrated that the memories were so close but he couldn't grasp anything. "My father's Japanese. We lived in Austria but I came to Japan to learn the piano. I… God damnit, why can't I remember more? Who am I?"

"You're an angel." Hyde said softly and squeezed him in his arms reassuringly. He ran his hand over his hair and murmured, "You're a talented pianist too. You know how to speak German and Japanese. You're stubborn and pretty violent for an angel. We'll find out more about you, don't worry. I promise you that."

"Thank you, Hyde." He closed his eyes and found that the tension had left his body. He was silent for a moment and Hyde realized that Licht was asleep, leaning his cheek against his chest. His expression was almost tranquil and Hyde adjusted the blanket around him. He slipped his hand beneath him and lifted him into his arms to carry him back to his room.

"I promise that I'll get your memory back." Hyde vowed but he didn't know where to start or what to do.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've been so absorbed and excited for The Forest of Ash but I wanted to refocused on my other projects because I really do like them and want to keep them ongoing.


	11. Chapter 11

"Are you still working on that pocket watch?" Kuro returned to the library's office with a cup of tea in each hand. He went to submit their reports to Lily while Mahiru worked. He stopped by the kitchen on his way back to make something for them drink. After he passed a cup to Mahiru, he looked over his shoulder to observe him tinkering on the pocket watch they found in the attic.

After a while, Mahiru placed the pocket watch on the table. He leaned back in his chair and folded his legs beneath him. He sipped the warm drink and let himself relax. "This thing is a little trickier than I thought it would be. The hunter case is smashed at the edge here and the lock system is snapped closed. I'm afraid I might damage it further if I force it open. I wish I had my tools with me to repair this."

"If it's a basic repair kit, we can buy one when we go into town." Kuro suggested and picked up the pocket watch. He turned it in his hand but he didn't see anything special about it for Mahiru to want to restore it. "You said that you like history and stuff. Do you really think that this thing is actually that significant? We found it in a piano and no one seemed to be looking for it."

"That might be the case but I like fixing things like this. If I couldn't be a curator, I would've been a conservator. When I was little, I helped my uncle repair this old grandfather clock. I had so much fun and I loved the stories he told me about the clock. You never know the stories one little antique can hold." Mahiru told him with a nostalgic smile. "If we don't take care of these things, those stories will be forgotten. Once I finish repairing this, I'll return it to Misono and you'll see how happy it makes him."

"Rather than getting that pocket watch back, I think Misono will be happier that you did something nice for him. Kid never had many friends. I can count the number of people he's close to on one hand." He returned the watch to him. Mahiru wrapped it in cloth and then placed it in his drawer. He locked it because he wanted to keep it a surprise and he worried that Misono might find it.

"I'm finished with things here. We have the day off so how about we head into town a little early?" Mahiru pushed away from the desk and stood. They were planning to speak with the girl that saw Licht jump off the cliff. Hopefully, she could tell them more about that night. The guards they spoke with were unhelpful and it frustrated Mahiru that he couldn't find the answers about Licht's death.

He sighed and shrugged on his jacket. Mahiru was a little surprised when Kuro took the jacket and helped him slip it on. "Does your arm still hurt from last night?"

"Who's the worrywart now, Kuro? It's doesn't hurt anymore and I got it checked this morning. Johannes said that it's just a scratch. Let's return these cups to the kitchen and then go into town." He hooked his arm around Kuro's and pulled him to the door. "I haven't been outside this manor since I arrived. It's nice to have a change of scene occasionally. What do you usually do when you get a day off like this?"

"The Alicein provide pretty much anything we need here so I don't go out much. I spend my free days watching TV or playing video games." Kuro knew that he must've seemed like a lazy teenager. Normally, he didn't care what people think of him but he did with Mahiru. "Sometimes I talk to my siblings over the phone to catch up. One of my brothers is staying at our house in town for a visit right now."

"We should go visit him since we have time before we talk with Yuri's family. From all the stories you told me about your siblings, you seem really close with them. It must've been nice to have a house full of people. I was an only child." They fell into an easy conversation as they walked down the hall. "You always have someone to play with."

"And someone to steal the last cup ramen you were saving. The grass is always greener on the other side, I guess. I would've given anything for an hour of quiet back then. Can't live with them, get lonely without them. There's nothing like family though, no matter how big or small. You said that you were raised by your uncle, didn't you?" It was something small he told him but he was happy that he remembered it.

As they were walked out of the manor, Mahiru noticed Tetsu walking up the driveway. He waved to him as a polite gesture and stopped to talk to him briefly. "Morning, Tetsu. It's a beautiful day, isn't it? We're heading into town so we can pick something up for you if you need anything."

"I was in town earlier." Tetsu told him. He took something out of his pocket and held it out to Mahiru. It was a cameo brooch decorated with flowers. "I bought this for Misono. I was going to ask you to look at it before I give it to him. The man who sold it to me said that sophisticated people likes things like these. This cameo brooch is actually made from a shell so there's no other brooch like it."

"That's so sweet of you." Mahiru's voice was warm and excited as he took the brooch to study it. "It's rare to see a shell cameo design of something other than a person but these carnations might be more meaningful for Misono. It's hard to get this level of detail without using a mold. If you..."

He trailed off and Kuro saw worry pass over his face briefly. The expression disappeared quickly and Mahiru was smiling once again so Kuro wondered if he was mistaken. Mahiru handed him back the brooch and said, "Misono will love this. Did you buy this from the original artist or through a dealer? I would like to buy a brooch to take home. How much did this cost?"

The price made Mahiru lightheaded for a moment but he didn't say anything as Tetsu gave him a business card. "I bought it from this antique shop."

He thanked him and placed the card in his bag before they continued down the long driveway. There was a car parked in front of the gate and he opened the passenger door for Mahiru. Kuro walked around the car and slid behind the steering wheel. As he started the car, he watched Mahiru from the corner of his eyes. His expression told him that something was bothering him.

"What's with that scowl? You look like you want to kill someone. You're fuming so much that smoke is going to come out of your ears." Kuro lightly poked his cheek. He pulled out of the driveway and waited for Mahiru to tell him what was on his mind. He knew that he wouldn't be upset without a reason.

"… The shell cameo Tetsu bought is a fake." Mahiru answer with a sigh. He rolled down the window and let the wind wash over him. "If the brooch's decoration was made from a shell, the material would be more translucent and light will pass through it. But, when I held it up to the sun, the material didn't act like a shell. It was more similar to plastic with how it reflected the light."

"Why didn't you tell Tetsu it was a forgery?" He knew how much respect Mahiru had for the heirlooms and art history. He had spent the last month listening to small art history lessons from Mahiru. With a murmur, Mahiru ran his hand through his hair and tried to straighten it. He tried to think of how to tell Kuro his feelings and make him understand.

"The brooch is fake but Tetsu's feelings are real. I think that's the most important thing when he gives it to Misono. It'll become a nice memory for them and I hope Misono treasures it. That's what most important to me." Mahiru took out the business card from his bag. "But I want to drop by this antique store and try to get Tetsu's money back. Maybe we could have Lily give it back to him under the guise of a bonus."

"How do you know the guy will give you Tetsu's money? I don't think you can muscle the dealer into doing what you want."

"I'm not going to use violence. There are other ways to persuade someone." Mahiru said with a sly smile.

* * *

"This should be the place." Mahiru pushed open the door and marched to the front desk. He rang the bell and waited for a worker. He scanned the shop and he couldn't help but appraise the items on display. It was more like a garage sale than an antique shop but he could see a few things of value. "What are you doing, Kuro? You can't go back there."

He tried to stop him when he saw Kuro walk into the employee-only section. Kuro merely walked to the back room and knocked on the door. Then he called through the door: "Hey, JeJe, you in there? I brought you an angry customer to deal with."

A rather tall man stepped out of the room and Mahiru was a little intimidated by his height. He pushed aside the slight fear he felt and reminded himself that he needed to get Tetsu's money back. His stood straighter and he faced the man. Kuro was much more relaxed and patted Mahiru's shoulder. "JeJe's my brother so you don't need to be so afraid. We can talk this out."

"This man is your brother?" His jaw dropped. They looked so different that Mahiru would never guess that they were related. Then again, Kuro didn't look similar to Lily either. "Why didn't you tell me that your brother worked at this place? It would've been easier to get Tetsu's money back."

"Well, I didn't know until you told me the address. I thought you would freak out if I told you the guy that sold the brooch to Tetsu was my brother. You looked pretty angry and I didn't want you to judge my family. JeJe's a good guy even if he looks kinda scary." Kuro explained and Mahiru could hear how much he cared about his brother in his voice.

"Okay, maybe all of this was some big understanding. From all the stories you told me about your family, your siblings seem like great people. Did you know that the brooch you sold Tetsu was a fake? It doesn't cost a quarter of how much as the amount you made him pay. I'd pay fifty dollars for it at the most. So, just refund the rest to my friend and we'll be out of your hair."

"I can't really do that. Mikuni was the one that sold the brooch to that tall boy. He's the owner of this shop as well so you'll have to talk to him about the money. I don't know if he'll give you a refund but I can get him for you." JeJe told him. While Mahiru exhaled a frustrated breath, Kuro knew that he wasn't going to give up easily.

"I'm here, JeJe. Why is it that every time your brothers visit you, they bring trouble with them?" Mahiru turned toward the voice to see a blond man approach them. The man was smiling but he felt like there was something beneath it. He walked behind the counter and said, "I'm Mikuni. Is there anything in particular you're looking for? Maybe a ring?"

"What? No." Mahiru blushed when Mikuni looked between him and Kuro. "You sold a fake cameo brooch to my friend and I'm here to get his money back. The price was unfair and you must be aware of that as well. Like I said to JeJe, just give him a refund and I'll drop the issue quietly."

"I'll give him a refund if he returns the brooch. That's how these things work." Mikuni reminded him.

"… I don't have it. Tetsu is giving it to his friend so I didn't have the heart to tell him that it was a fake when I noticed." Mahiru admitted but there was a stubborn determination in his eyes. "Even if I had the brooch with me, I wouldn't return it to you and risk you selling fake jewelry to someone else."

"Then I can't return his money." Mikuni shrugged and started to leave.

"Sir, do you realize that selling Tetsu that brooch under false pretences is jewelry fraud? If you would rather speak to the police about this issue, I can arrange that. I wonder what other counterfeit items I might find here that I can bring to their attention." Mahiru spoke slowly and deliberately.

"Are you threatening me?" Mikuni raised a brow at him.

"Am I? Look, I don't want to cause you any trouble but you took advantage of my friend. If you return his money, this will all be over easily." Mahiru crossed his arms and met Mikuni's hard eyes. A silence passed between them before the older man burst into laughter. He thought that he might have to argue more but Mikuni finally stopped laughing and spoke.

"You're interesting. Tetsu paid with a card so I'll write you a cheque." He handed the cheque to him and Mahiru took it. He was a little that it was addressed to Lily and not Tetsu. Mikuni must've read his expression when he explained, "I don't know you but I trust Lily. He still works at the Alicein mansion, doesn't he? He'll give the boy his money back."

"Thank you." Mahiru folded the cheque and placed it in his pocket. Then he patted Kuro on the shoulder and gestured to the door. "We should get going now, Kuro."

He nodded to him before facing his brother. "Bye, JeJe. It was good to see you again."

Kuro went with Mahiru and held open the door for him. They walked back to the car parked across the street. He looked down at Mahiru and said, "Remind me never to make you angry. Well, I guess I already did that a couple times already. I'm glad you didn't get that scary with me."

"I wasn't that bad, was I?" Mahiru looked a little guilty so he shook his head. He knew how kind Mahiru was and that he only wanted to defend his friend. "At least we got Tetsu's money back for him. I'm a little surprise that man knew Lily though. It really is a small world we live in. If I knew that they were friends, I would've let asked Lily to talk to him and get Tetsu's money back for me."

"I don't know how close they are. Mikuni never visits the mansion. The only reason I know him is through my brother, JeJe." He said and Mahiru looked thoughtful.

"Is he the brother that just came back to town to visit? If you wanted to talk to him more, you could've told me. I can go speak with Yuri's family on my own." He said after a moment. "I just realized how much of your time I'm taking. I'm grateful for everything you're doing for me but you probably think I'm troublesome dragging you with me everywhere."

"It's a little troublesome but I don't mind." Kuro shrugged. He reached over and ruffled his soft hair. Mahiru had to blush at the casual gesture. "You don't need to feel guilty. JeJe lives here and my other brother, Hyde, is the one visiting. We can always see him after we talk with Yuri's family."

"I would like to meet more of your family. Between Lily, Hugh and now JeJe, they seem like interesting people. They must've ran you ragged when you were younger." Mahiru chuckled. "Do you want to stop by a restaurant to eat? We can talk more over a nice meal."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just a short chapter to establish a few things


	12. Chapter 12

"We're here." Kuro parked the car in front of a house. They planned to speak to Yuri because she claimed to see Licht jump. He would rather not make her recount the events of that day. But he hoped hearing her story would make Mahiru give up his search for his friend's phantom murderer. He couldn't believe that someone in the mansion was a killer.

Mahiru stepped out of the car and looked over the small house. As a curator, he admired the historic architecture of the windows. Even though the foundation was old, his keen eyes could see that it was restored recently. The age worn home was well kept and Mahiru knew how expensive it must've been to maintain it. He forced the curator in him aside and walked to the front door.

He raised his hand to knock on the door but he found himself hesitating. Honestly, Mahiru was a little afraid of the truth. Licht was his best friend and he didn't want to accept his death as a suicide. If he couldn't blame a killer for his death, he could only blame himself for not helping his friend. At the same time, Mahiru had come to know the residents of the Alicein's manor and he liked them.

"Are you okay?" Kuro whispered when he saw his downcast eyes. He could guess what was troubling him from the emotions clouding his face. He took his hand and turned Mahiru to face him. "No matter what she tells us, it's going to be okay. I'll be here by your side if you need me."

Even though he said the words to reassure Mahiru, it caused a stone to sink into Kuro's stomach. As soon as he finished his sentence, he remembered that he couldn't keep his promise. Mahiru would return to his life in Tokyo once he finished his appraisal and discovered the truth of Licht's death. The only reason he took the job was for his friend. After that, he would leave as abruptly as he came into his life.

He let go of Mahiru's hand because he was confused by how sad the thought of him leaving made him. Kuro's only consolation was that his words eased the doubt and worry from Mahiru's face. He smiled up at him and said, "Thank you, Kuro. Knowing that really helps. We should keep our talk with Yuri short. She might've saw something that could help us but I don't want to trouble a child."

Mahiru knocked on the door and they waited for someone to answer. A woman answered the door and her eyes narrowed when she saw the two. They called earlier and the family should be expecting them so Mahiru was confused by her words, "Are you reporters? I told you people that we don't want to answer any of your questions. We already gave our statements to the police."

"We're not reporters." Mahiru could see how suspicious she was. He assumed that she was merely being protective of her daughter. If reporters had been bothering them, he understood why she would be weary. Yet, there hadn't been any reports about Licht's death in the media. The family certainly had the resources to stop the news from being published. He shook his head and told himself to focus on finding the truth.

"We are employees of the Alicein household and we called earlier. Kuro and I merely want to ask a few questions for a follow up report. May we come in?" Mahiru asked her in a kind voice. Kuro took out his employee badge and handed it to the mother to further reassure her. Once she seemed satisfied, she let them into the house.

There was a pair of twins playing in the living room and they jumped to their feet when they spotted their visitors. They both had wide smiles on their face as they crowded around Kuro. "Mr. Sloth! You came to visit us! Are Lily and the others from the mansion coming to play too? Do you have enough energy to play with us? I want a ride."

"Can't deal," Kuro struggled to keep his balance but it was difficult with how they pulled on his arms. Mahiru smiled faintly as he watched him play with the children. Considering Kuro's attitude, he didn't expect him to be so energetic with them. He took one of the girls and lifted her onto his shoulder. "You can ride Mr. Sloth first, Mari. Yuri, this is Mahiru and he came to ask you a few questions. After you're done talking, I'll give you a ride."

"Wait," Their mother shouted and came between them. She took Mari from Kuro and urged the twins towards the stairs. They reluctantly left when she ordered them to play in their room. After they were gone, she straightened and faced Mahiru. "Over the phone, I said I would answer your questions. Yuri is just a child and I don't want you interrogating her. I'll tell you everything she told me."

"I didn't intend to interrogate her but I understand why you don't want me to talk to her." Mahiru relented. He would rather learn what happened that night from Yuri because she was there. But he knew he couldn't persuade the mother and he didn't want to cause a child distress. "I only have a few questions so I won't take up too much of your time. Where should we sit and talk?"

"There is a table in the kitchen. I can make us some tea while we talk." She suggested and Mahiru nodded. They walked down the hall but Kuro excused himself to go to the bathroom.

Mahiru sat at the table and took out his notepad. The woman looked stiff as she set the kettle on the stove. He thought it was best not to push her for answers too soon. "This is a beautiful home you have. It must be difficult to preserve such an old house but it's worth it, isn't it? Your house has so much character and the twins seem happy to be home."

"With the support from the Alicein family, we've been able to keep up with the payments on the house. We owe a lot to the family. My husband and I have wanted a family for the longest time so we're grateful for the Alicein helping us adopt Yuri and Mari." She said. Mahiru remembered Kuro telling him that most of the children in the mansion were orphans.

"They seem like sweet children. It's horrible that Yuri had to witness… She told you everything that happened?" The woman nodded. "I would like to ask you a few questions now. Was Licht alone on the cliff? Did she see anyone else with Licht that night?"

* * *

"Yuri, Mari, I want to play with you but I need to get back to Mahiru." Kuro groaned when the twins refused to let him go. The girls were happily braiding his hair and they didn't want him to leave until they were finished. Earlier, he passed their room when he left the bathroom. They wanted to play with him so he stopped briefly. He didn't think it would take so long.

He pictured Mahiru questioning the woman alone and how difficult it must be to hear about Licht's death. They were both adults but he promised to stay beside him and support him. He knew that the twins missed their friends at the mansion and allowed them to finish playing with his hair. Kuro hoped that he could return to Mahiru soon.

"I need to get another bow. Sit still, Mr. Sloth." Mari skipped the vanity after she gave him the order. She rummaged through the mess on the counter.

"How are you doing, Yuri?" Kuro whispered to the little girl behind him. He wanted to see how well Yuri was adjusting without her sister overhearing them. He didn't know how much Mari knew and he wanted to protect them. She appeared happy enough while she told him about the things she did after they returned home.

"If you need anything, I'm sure the Alicein will provide help for you. You might've gotten adopted but we still consider you our family." He ruffled her hair like he would with his siblings. "I know you liked Licht but it's going to be okay. Are your parents taking you to someone to talk about what happened with Licht?"

"Did something happen to Mr. Angel?" Yuri tilted her head slightly. A chill ran through Kuro and he turned to face her. His brows furrowed. Her words were far too nonchalant considering everything. She appeared honestly confused and Kuro was almost afraid to ask her directly.

"Yuri, why did the Alicein send you home?"

"Mr. Alicein said that we've been really good and we deserved a vacation to spend with our new family. It's been a lot of fun." Yuri told him with a smile but the world began to fall around him. If she didn't know about Licht, the Alicein's story about that night was wrong. He needed to tell Mahiru but he couldn't begin to know how. He could barely begin to understand it himself.

"I'm sorry, we really need to go. I'll come back and play with you two another time." Kuro stood sharply. With barely a glance to the girls, he rushed out of the room and down the stairs.

At the bottom of the steps, he almost ran into Mahiru. Kuro caught himself and stopped before he could hurt him. He wanted to tell Mahiru about Yuri but he saw the mother standing behind him. He couldn't be certain how involved she was with the lie. The downcast expression Mahiru had stopped him as well. Kuro's first instinct was to comfort him. He cupped his cheek with one hand. "Mahiru?"

"I finished speaking with her." Mahiru spoke with a small voice. "She confirmed everything about Licht. I guess it's time to go home."

He slipped out of his hands and went out the door. Mahiru didn't bother with saying goodbye to the woman because his lungs hurt too much. It was difficult enough to hold himself together the entire time he listened to her tell him about that night. He still didn't want to believe that Licht jumped but she didn't have a reason to lie.

Mahiru hurried to the car so he would have a private place to cry. His friend was gone and he didn't have a scrap of hope left to hold onto. He cursed when he couldn't open the car door and kicked the car. Then he placed his forehead against the window and sank to the ground. He wanted to sob but there was a lump in his throat.

A warm hand took his arm and gently pulled him away from the cold car. Kuro saw that he was holding back tears. His sympathetic red eyes made Mahiru want to throw himself into his arms. He lowered his head onto his shoulder. "Licht is gone but I wanted answers before I could accept it. It's over, Kuro. I'm sorry I wasted your time and suspected your friends."

He clutched Kuro's jacket because he needed him and didn't want him to leave. Kuro lifted his face and tenderly kissed the tears clinging to the corner of his eye. He knew that he had to tell Mahiru the truth. He couldn't stand to see him sad. "Mahiru, the mom lied to you about Licht. I talked with Yuri and she doesn't know a thing about Licht."

"What?" Mahiru wiped the tears from his eyes. "But that means the story they told the police was a lie. Why would they cover up what happened?"

"I don't know but I'll help you figure this out." Kuro hugged him and stroked his hair lovingly. He wished he could make everything better for him but the only thing he could do at the moment was hold him. "What do you want to do now? I already promised you that I'll stay beside you through everything."

"Thank you, Kuro. But I don't have the energy to go back to the mansion and face everyone. Can we go visit your brother like we originally planned?" Mahiru leaned away from him and gave him a weak smile. He was grateful that he had Kuro with him. "But we should get those braids and bows out of your hair before we go visit your family."

"Yuri and Mari thought it would be funny to dress me up." Kuro blushed, embarrassed that Mahiru saw him with silly bows in his hair. He tugged the bows free until Mahiru touched his hair. He untangled the braids from his hair and then ran his fingers through his blue strands. Even after the bows and braids were gone, Mahiru smoothed his hand over his hair.

"Your hair is really soft. Most people don't wear their hair long like this anymore but looks good on you." His compliment only made Kuro's face redden more. "It would look really nice if you tied it back so people can see your eyes better."

"Haircuts and appointments are troublesome. Please don't play with my hair like they did." He took his hands from his hair. "Let's go see my brother and have a normal, mystery-free dinner."

* * *

"So, what's your brother like?" He asked as Kuro unlocked the door. He already met a few of his siblings and they each had colourful personalities. Kuro answered with a nonchalant shrug and told him about the trouble Hyde got into when they were younger. Mahiru could easily picture his childhood being filled with laughter because he had so many siblings. He wondered if they would've been friends if they knew each other then. It was a nice thought.

"Hyde is loud but a good guy. He returned from Europe recently so it would be nice to catch up on things. When I talked to him on the phone, he said that an angel was staying with him. Must be a new friend." Kuro opened the door and held it open for Mahiru. As they walked down the hall to the living room, Kuro yelled. "Hey, Hyde, I'm home! Get out of my favourite spot. I know you're sitting in my chair."

"It's the only recliner in the room! Don't be so mean and assume the worst of your little brother. Anyways, Angel-chan is using it so you're wrong. I told you about him on the phone." A voice echoed through the hall and Mahiru guessed that was his brother. He could tell that they were close from their banter. Even as they exchanged quips, Mahiru could hear how much they cared about each other.

"I brought someone home too. His name is Mahiru and…" His words trailed off when he entered the room. Hyde didn't seem to notice the shock on his brother's face because he was focused on the man next to Kuro. It was rare for Kuro to befriend someone, let alone bring them to their childhood home. He was curious about the man and waited for Mahiru to introduce himself.

"Oh my god," Mahiru's breathed as his body became numb. "Licht?"

"You know Licht?" Hyde raised a brow at him. He had to be suspicious because he could be the person that tried to kill him. He tried to stand in front of him protectively but he was taken aback when Licht kicked him. The sight pulled Mahiru from his shock and he ran to his friend. He pushed Hyde aside so he could reach his friend.

Hyde would've stopped Mahiru except Kuro grabbed his shoulders and forced him to take a few steps away from the two. He was confused but he knew Mahiru must be more so. Kuro told himself that it was best to give them their privacy. He watched Mahiru throw his arms around Licht and clung onto him desperately. He suddenly felt like an outside watching them.

Licht looked down at the familiar stranger holding him tightly with confusion and his brows furrowed. The brunette was sobbing into his chest and his words were incoherent among his tears. He didn't know who the man was but he hugged him. A memory played in his mind but it was mostly blurs and shadows he couldn't catch.

"Are you really here, Licht? They said they never found a body but I didn't think…" The tears finally subsided enough for Mahiru to speak. His voice was a faint whisper since his throat felt raw. He rubbed the tears from his eyes so he could see his friend clearer. He never thought he would find his friend again but here he was. Mahiru touched his face lightly, afraid that he would break the illusion before him.

He took a shaky breath and spoke. "Say, Licht, are you an angel or demon?"

"Can't you recognize an angel when you see one?" Mahiru made a painful laugh at his answer. His curt words were a relief to Mahiru. They made his chest tighten painfully as well. There were so many emotions running through him, everything from joy to confusion, that his body shook. He didn't know if he was dreaming or not but he was happy to be with his friend again.

"I can't believe you're here…" He said more to himself than anyone else. Then he yelled at Licht, "Why didn't you call us if you were well and safe this entire time? We all thought you were dead! They told us that you committed suicide. We were all grieving and none of us knew how to process everything. I travelled all the way here for answers when you could've called me to tell me what happened!"

"He couldn't call you when he doesn't remember you." Hyde interjected. Mahiru didn't understand what he meant at first and looked from him to Licht. Then he realized that there was a hint of recognition in his blue eyes. "He lost his memories. Licht only remembers a few things from his past like his name and that he plays the piano. Now, who are you?"

"My name is Mahiru Shirota." He answered and let go of Licht. His head was spinning and he felt a little dizzy. Even with Licht before him, he was no closer to discovering the answers he wanted. He sat down on the couch and tried to process everything. "Licht and I have been best friends since high school. You really don't remember me, Licht?"

"Are you an angel like me?" Licht tilted his head slightly and tried to place where he knew him. It was impossible and he found himself frustrated. The man seemed faintly familiar but he couldn't recall a single thing about him.

"I'm an angel in training. You've always said that I was a slow learner though." Mahiru laugh but it was pitiful at best. His eyes dropped down to his hands on his lap because he couldn't stand Licht looking at him like a stranger. A warm hand fell onto his shoulder and he looked up to see Kuro standing before him. The concern in his red eyes touched his heart and he was grateful to have Kuro's support.

Kuro sat next to him and a hush fell over the room. No one knew what to say at the moment. Hyde leaned against the wall and glanced at Mahiru. With how he acted when he saw Licht, he had to wonder about their relationship. A hint of jealousy entered him and turned his stomach. But he knew that it was best for Licht to be with someone from his past. Maybe his memories would return faster with Mahiru's help.

"They told you that Licht tried to commit suicide? When I first met him, I saw him fall off the cliff but it wasn't an accident. I was exploring a cave near the bottom of the cliff and I heard a fight. It was lucky that I was there that night and I was able to save him. Someone was after his life and he doesn't remember who so I thought that it was best to hide him here."

"Thank you for protecting my friend for so long. I'll find a way to repay you." Mahiru stood. His fear that someone in the mansion had hurt his friend was confirmed. He walked to Licht and took his hand. "We're going home, Licht. It isn't safe for you here. Your parents need to know you're safe as well. I'm putting you on the first plane back to Tokyo. I'll tell you about yourself on the way back home."

"What?" The brothers shouted at the same time. Hyde shot to his feet and his first instinct was to keep Licht next to him where he could protect him. But he knew that Licht would be safest in another city and out of the killer's reach. He bit his lip and his hands tightened into fists. He knew that he was being selfish and he should let him go.

Kuro was silent the entire time, staring at the ground. He was aware that Mahiru was going to leave him eventually but he never expected it to be so soon. The only reason he came to the Alicein's household was for Licht's sake and they found him now. Mahiru no longer had a reason to stay. Even though those thoughts were going through his mind, he spoke up.

"This is a lot to take in, Mahiru. How about we decide what to do in the morning?" Kuro suggested. His voice was small because he didn't know if he was doing the right thing for Mahiru's safety. "You probably want to stay here with Licht and talk with him. I'll call Lily and tell him that we're staying here tonight."

"Fine." Mahiru agreed reluctantly.


	13. Chapter 13

"Mahiru, the shower's free. I left some of my old clothes on the bed. You can wear them for the night." Kuro walked into the bedroom. He was used to sharing a room with Mahiru so he didn't bother to knock before he entered. They decided that it would be best to stay in the cabin for the night. Mahiru wanted to stay with his friend, especially after Hyde told them that Licht was stabbed before he went over the cliff.

"Thank you, Kuro." Mahiru looked up from his laptop and gave him a strained smile. He was exhausted and Kuro knew he was likely still trying to process everything. Kuro glanced at his laptop screen and saw that Mahiru was booking a plane ticket. His heart wavered and he didn't understand his own feelings. He took a chair and sat next to Mahiru.

"You're leaving soon, aren't you? When's your flight? I can drive you and Licht to the airport." He offered. Kuro doubted he could convince Mahiru to stay but he thought he could steal a few extra moments with him. Even before Mahiru told him his motivations for taking the temporary job with the Alicein, he knew that Mahiru would leave. He wasn't gone yet, but Kuro missed him already.

"I haven't decided when yet." Mahiru scrolled through the flight options but he didn't click on one. He pushed his chair back until it bumped into Kuro's chair. He leaned against the backrest and looked up at Kuro. "I would like to take Licht back home as soon as possible where he'll be safe. His parents are going to be shocked when we arrive there. I think it'll be best to tell them in person rather than over the phone."

"Returning to Tokyo might not be easy though. Licht doesn't have his passport or any ID. The police will likely have a lot of questions when a reportedly dead person shows up too." Kuro pointed out. The moment the words left his mouth, Kuro silently hit himself. Why did he say that? Someone in the mansion tried to kill Licht and the two would be safest in another city.

"I guess you're right. After listening to everything Hyde said, the only thing on my mind was leaving and I got ahead of myself. I just want to protect him. With that person still roaming free, Licht isn't safe here. We don't even know who he could be." Mahiru sighed and Kuro felt guilty. He wished he could be with Mahiru a little longer but he knew he couldn't be selfish. The best thing he could do was help him leave.

"Maybe you can use the train and go to the city next to us. You two should stay in a hotel while we sort out this mess. It's not as far as Tokyo but the killer can't reach Licht in the next town." He suggested. Mahiru thought over the option for a while. In the end, he shook his head. Kuro thought that it was the best compromise so he was confused.

"Thinking simple, I would worry about him too much while I'm here and he's alone in a hotel that's miles away. Licht is impulsive and unpredictable. I was planning to leave Licht with his parents and then coming back to the mansion. At least I could trust his parents to watch over him if I took him back to Tokyo. I want to stay and help investigate but I can't leave Licht alone when he doesn't have his memories." Mahiru rubbed his temple but his headache didn't lessen.

Only when Kuro took his hand and squeezed it lightly did he become less tense. Mahiru looked down at their joined hands. This wasn't the first time he thought of how grateful he was to have Kuro's support. But now he was beginning to think of how much he would miss him once he returned to Tokyo. He had been so focused on finding the person who hurt Licht that he didn't think about what he would do afterwards. Leaving the mansion was the simple answer until he became closer with Kuro.

"What's with that face? Everything's going to be fine so you don't need to frown like that. Licht is alive and that's a miracle. I've explored that cove as a kid and I know how dangerous it is. Whoever attacked Licht probably thinks he's dead like we did. He won't come after Licht so he should be safe here with Hyde. My brother has been watching over him all this time."

Kuro wanted to reassure Mahiru but then a dreadful thought came to him. Would the person target Mahiru if they knew he was searching for Licht's killer? They knew he had no qualms with murder. He bit his lip. He couldn't stand the thought of someone hurting Mahiru. His next words were a promise to himself as much as they were for Mahiru, "I won't let anything happen to you or the people you care about."

"I know." He didn't need to tell him that for Mahiru to know that he could rely on Kuro. He was happy to hear the vow though. Mahiru opened the laptop and exited the window without booking a ticket. "I don't know what I would do without you, Kuro. I doubt I would've found out that Licht was alive if it wasn't for you. When this is over, I'll find a way to repay you. Just tell me what you want."

Kuro tried to return Mahiru's smile but he couldn't bring himself to. The one thing he wanted from Mahiru was something he couldn't ask from him. He wanted him to stay.

* * *

Licht took a shaky breath and forced his feet to move forward and towards the cliff. He needed to remember what happened to him that night. Mahiru told him about himself but everything was still a fog to him. He had more answers about his past but he wasn't satisfied like he thought he would be. It was as if he was hearing a story about someone else's life.

He worried his lip as he remember the tense dinner. He hated how lost he felt and he decided to search for his memories again. Licht was certain that Mahiru would try to stop him so he waited until everyone was asleep before he left. He said that they were friends and he believed him. It was more than the pictures on Mahiru's phone that convinced him. The man did seem familiar and his reaction was genuine.

"Licht Jekylland Todoroki," he muttered his full name to himself but it still sounded foreign to him. Why haven't his memories returned even after listening to Mahiru's stories about himself? Was there something in his memories that he didn't want to remember? He shivered at the thought. Licht glanced up at the cliff and his eyes followed the jagged edge down to the water.

"It still amazes me that you survived such a high fall." Licht turned sharply at the voice. He relaxed when he saw that it was only Hyde. He walked forward and closed the space between them. "I don't know who's more relieved that I was there that night: you or me. You're alive and that's all that matters for now. It's dangerous out here so we should head back to the cabin."

"No, I came out here to get my memories back and I'm not going back until I do. I thought everything would come back to me once Mahiru tells me about my past. Yet it feels like I know less about myself!" Licht ran his hands through his hair in frustration. "I feel like I'm going mad trying to piece everything together. What did I do to make someone try to kill me? I can't remember and… I'm scared."

Licht's confession was a shaky whisper and it was almost drowned out by the water crashing on the rocks next to them. But Hyde heard it. Neither of them had the answer to that and Hyde knew that only the truth would comfort Licht. But he wanted to lessen the fears he had. He gathered his trembling body into his arms. Hyde rubbed his back and tucked his head beneath his chin.

He searched for the right words to help him. "I wish I could tell you that everything is going to be okay but I just don't know. The only things I can promise you is that I'm going to do everything I can to help you. No matter why that person is after you, I'm going to protect you. I got to know who you are and I can't see why anyone would want to hurt you."

He couldn't help but feel protective of Licht in his arms. If only he could give him more than comforting words. In their time together, he learned that Licht was independent and had a strong sense of self even without him memories. The stories Mahiru told them only confirmed that. Not knowing why someone was after him and having to depend on others must be difficult for him. Hyde was happy that Licht was willing to lean on him.

"Hyde, can you to take me to the cliff. Not the caves but the top where I fell. Please?" Licht leaned away from him so he look into his red eyes while he pleaded "I know Mahiru is going to force me to leave but I can't do that until I get back my memories. Running away and hiding from this situation isn't going to help. You said that you're going to do everything you can so take me there!"

"Think about this, Lichtan. Even if we don't run into any danger, there's no guarantee you'll remember anything up there. Are you willing to risk it?" Hyde could easily picture everything that could go wrong so he didn't know if he should take Licht to the cliff. His determined blue eyes told him that he would go even if he said no. At least he could protect him if he went with him.

Hyde relented, "Okay. I used to work in the mansion so I know how to sneak you in. But we can't go tonight. Your friend just found you again and I'm sure Mahiru will yell at me if I put you in danger again. He seems a little protective of his friend. I can't believe my brother brought a guy like that home. I never thought he'll be into the troublesome type of guy."

"That's my best friend you're talking about. I might not remember him well but he flew here to find me. Anyways, your eyes reminds me of him. That was one of the reasons I decided to trust you."

"The last I checked, Mahiru has plain brown eyes and mine are a beautiful ruby red." Licht rolled his eyes at how Hyde boasted about his own eyes. They were a beautiful colour but Licht would never tell him that. Hyde grinned and pinched his cheek teasingly. "Maybe you should get glasses that matches mine, Angel Cakes. I bet you'll look cute in them too."

"You better stop pinching my cheeks before I kick you into the water, Shit Rat. I don't need glasses, let alone a pair that matches yours. I know you two have different eye colours. What I meant was you two both have bright eyes." Licht blushed slightly. He couldn't tell him that his red eyes could light up the room like Mahiru's. The slight difference was that he could fall into Hyde's eyes.

Licht pulled his gaze away and looked towards the mansion on top of the cliff. Inside those walls were his memories but even he knew he couldn't merely barge in demanding answers. It was frustrating but there was little he could do without his memories. He hesitantly hooked his fingers around Hyde's. "Take me home for now. But don't forget you promised to take me to the cliff later."

"I'll talk to Mahiru about it tomorrow morning." Hyde nodded and adjusted his hand around his so their fingers locked together. They walked back to the house together, hand in hand.

* * *

The tea kettle made a high pitch sound and Kuro rushed to take it off the stove before it could wake anyone in the house. Mahiru has been up most of the night worrying and only fell asleep an hour ago. He didn't blame him after everything that happened though. He wanted to let him sleep as much as possible before they had to return to the mansion.

Kuro didn't know what going back to the mansion would be like now that he knew someone attacked Licht and the household covered it up. They couldn't go to the police either. A heavy sighed escaped him and Kuro wished he could crawl back into the bed and let everything be a bad dream. The situation was likely worse for Mahiru when he first came to the mansion because he had no one to lean on. Mahiru had to be the strongest person he knew.

"You're up earlier than me for once." Kuro looked over his shoulder to see Mahiru walk into the small kitchen. He moved to stand next to him and leaned against the counter. There were bags under his brown eyes and he knew that he didn't sleep well. He took down another cup and poured him tea as well. He pushed it towards Mahiru once he was finished. "One sugar and no milk, just the way I like it."

"I can't cook a stunning breakfast like you can but I know how to make you tea. You like things simple. That makes things easy for me though." Kuro shrugged with a smile. Their pleasant conversation filled the small kitchen and Mahiru almost wished they could stay instead of returning to the mansion. He had to go back to finish the appraisals and find who hurt his friend.

When Hyde entered the kitchen, he found the two laughing and standing next to each other in the morning light. They seemed to be in their own world because they didn't notice his presence. It was a quaint scene but a surprising one for Hyde. After listening to his brother tell him how troublesome romance was, he never thought he'll see Kuro so happy with someone.

Kuro said they weren't dating but Hyde could easily see that he was smitten. Hyde knocked on the door lightly and the two jumped apart once the two realized that he was watching them. He had to chuckle at their reaction as he sat at the table. "So, what's for breakfast, mom and dad?"

"There's cereal in the cupboard if you're hungry." Kuro nodded towards the cupboard. "I thought I raised you to be independent. But I got you a double expresso."

"Kuro, that's all you have to say to him? He just called us his parents. Aren't you going to correct him?" Mahiru had a bright blush on his cheeks. On the other hand, Kuro didn't seem to mind as he merely sat next to Hyde at the table. He knew the two were only teasing him but he suddenly felt flustered by the nickname. He wondered what Kuro told his brother about him.

Soon, Licht joined them at the table and they had a simple breakfast. It was a little awkward and the air was tense around them. They all knew that they should discuss how to move forward but it was difficult to know how. There was one question that Kuro had for Licht and he decided that he should ask him before they returned to the mansion.

"Licht, do you recognize this?" Kuro took out his keys and slipped one out of the ring. He pushed it across the table towards Licht. "I found this in your closet when we were searching your room. The Alicein's symbol is on it but it's not your room key. It doesn't match any of the keys I have either so I don't know what door it opens. I'm the head of the guards so I should have every key in the house. You were hired as a pianist so I can't think of why you would have one of their keys to begin with."

"You found a key and you didn't tell me? I thought we were partners in this." Mahiru frowned. He didn't like that Kuro kept something from him.

"It never came up before now. I thought the key was a dead end and I didn't want so I didn't want to bother you with it. You were already stressed enough." He hadn't intended to keep the key a secret from him but he wanted to see where the key led first. Even though he was only trying to be considerate, Mahiru still wished that he would've told him.

"Licht, I know you don't have your memories but try to remember where you got this key. It might be related to why you were attacked." Kuro said. He didn't want to put a lot of pressure on Licht but they needed to find the truth. He watched Licht carefully as he picked up the key. Licht's brows drew together as he turned the key in his hand.

He didn't say a word while he studied the key. He closed his eyes and worried his lower lip. Hyde could see that he was straining himself to remember something and becoming more frustrated. He placed his hand on Licht's arm. "Don't push yourself, Lichtan. We can find where that key leads other ways than pushing Licht to remember. Maybe Lily will know—"

He stopped when he heard Licht tapping the key against the wooden table. His eyes were still closed so he couldn't read his thoughts. The rhythmic clicking filled the kitchen and Licht focused on the sound. Usually, the sound would unnerve him but it was helping him concentrate on a buried memory now. "I found this key… it opens up a door… in the floor…"

He walked through his hazy memory until he could see a hidden door clearly on his mind. The latch opened and he lifted the trap door to see what was beneath. Sharp, brown eyes seemed to glow in the darkness of the doorway. Panic and fear pulled him away from the memory. Licht hands shook and he slammed the key onto the table. He instinctively jumped away from the key and clutched his hand to his chest.

"Did you remember something, Licht?" Hyde stood and cupped his face. He could feel how stiff he was and softened his voice. "Whatever you saw, it was just a memory. You're safe now. Take a deep breath for me, Lichtan. In and out slowly."

He took a shaky breath and Licht's composure slowly returned. Hyde smiled down at his reassuringly and rubbed his thumb over his cheek tenderly. "That was great, Lichtan. I don't remember a door in the floor at the mansion but it narrows it down. You don't need to push yourself to remember anything else. We'll find that door so you only need to focus on remembering other things."

Mahiru took the key and it felt heavy in his hand. If a tiny thing made Licht react so badly, it likely had a terrible memory attached to it. He refused to let the murderer find Licht and make his friend relive those memories. "Kuro and I were discussing what we should do last night. I wanted to take you back to Tokyo but that might be difficult."

"I'm not stepping on a plane!" Light snapped and pulled away from Hyde. "My memories are here and I'll never get them back if I run away. Angels don't run from demons. Hyde promised he would take me to the cliff tonight too."

"He said what?" Mahiru screamed and turned a glare to Hyde. "You planned to take my friend to the place he was  _stabbed_  and not discuss it with me? Do either of you have any common sense? I won't let you go. It's too dangerous. The simple solution is for you to leave town and stay in a hotel with Hyde. You'll be safe that way."

"Mahiru, calm down." Kuro tried to pull him back. "Licht and Hyde are adults and they can take care of themselves. You can trust my brother to protect your friend, remember? We need to head back to the mansion before Lily gets worried too. C'mon, Mahiru."

"I'll let the issue go for now but I'm not losing my friend a second time."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know it's been a long time since I updated one of my multi-chapter fanfics. I hurt my hand and had been focusing on reqs and oneshots in that time. But I'm going to be focusing on my main projects again.


	14. Chapter 14

"I don't think the key is for any of these doors." Mahiru said to Kuro who was sitting next to him. After they returned to the mansion, they decided to look through blueprints of the building in Lily's office. He hoped that they could find the door that the key opened. Even if it was a hidden door, the blueprints before them should tell them where it was.

From Licht's reaction to it, he was certain that it was connected to why someone would try to kill him. The only hint they had to which door it was that the door was on the floor. Kuro suggested. "In a house this old, there must a lot of secret passageways. Maybe we can ask Lily or Misono. They've been here since they were kids and they might've stumbled across a secret door while playing."

"I remember the first few days I lived here. It was a little overwhelming and confusing. Thankfully, I had you to show me around and I was able to figure out this maze of a house quickly. I only needed to memorize the way to the library and attic. There's a lot of places I haven't explored in this large house. If Licht was here, he would go through every room as if this was a haunted house attraction."

"Is that a good comparison? If this was a haunted house, I would bolt straight for the door. Who would explore a house full of ghosts?" He asked and the way he exaggerated made Mahiru chuckle. The smile that spread across his face and it made Kuro's heart melt. Recently, they hadn't been able to relax and he was happy to see him laugh again.

"I would call you a scaredy cat but I'm not any better. I would probably be scared half to death too. Honestly, I don't know how long I would last in one of those horror movies. The only reason I would stay in a haunted house is if others were trapped as well. Thinking simply, I have to save everyone." Mahiru folded the blueprint and set them aside.

"With how optimistic and brave you are, I can see you being the hero one of those fantasy books. That makes me the sidekick you drag into danger." Kuro meant it as a joke but he noticed guilt that passed his face. He reached over to give his arm a light squeezed. "I say a lot of things are troublesome but you're not one of them, Mahiru. I said I would help you because I want to."

Kuro took his hand back when the door opened behind them. He looked over his shoulder to see that his brother was the one who entered. They were in his office so he wasn't surprised. He leaned back in his chair and greeted him: "Morning, Lily. Did you have breakfast yet?"

"It's ten o'clock, Kuro. I know you have a terrible sleep schedule but you can't possibly consider this to be breakfast." Lily laughed. He was touched by his words though. Since they were kids, Kuro did his best to help raise his younger siblings. Even though they were all adults now, it was obvious Kuro still felt responsible for them. "I should be the one to ask you if you ate breakfast yet."

"If I did forget to eat, Mahiru will still be lecturing me. Too troublesome." He joked and Mahiru rolled his eyes. Then Kuro said to Lily, "Mahiru likes history and art so I thought we could give him a tour of this old house before he has to return to Tokyo. He has been here for a month but maybe he'll be interested in this place's secret passages or something."

"It's not like you to go out of your way for someone like this." Lily noted but something in his voice caught Kuro's attention. He thought he would be excited and offer to help them. Yet, his voice seemed nervous and hesitant. "Mahiru has already explored most of the main building and I don't think there's anything he might be interested in. The master has restricted access to most of the building as well so we should respect that."

"I understand," Mahiru nodded but his disappointment was clear in his voice. Kuro wished he could do more to help him. While he worked for the family, he didn't know the mansion well because he never bothered to explore it beyond the main building. "I was curious because this house is so old. In the movies, houses like this would have a thousand trap doors."

"This is an ordinary house. The Alicein family may be a powerful family but they have no need to build secret doors in this house." Lily told them. "May I ask you about the progress of the appraisal? I know you took the day off yesterday."

"I finished the evaluating about half of the heirlooms. I also prepared a spreadsheet with everything I used to determine the price. If you give to the museum, that will help the Alicein batter for a good price. I'll do my best to finish the rest in a timely manner." Mahiru reassured him. He didn't know how honest the statement was though.

The family was his clients so he wanted to perform his job to the best of his ability. Yet, he also wanted to prolong the job for as long as he could. It wasn't only to find who attacked Licht but he knew he would miss Kuro and the staff once his job ended.

* * *

"It's dark so be careful, Lichtan. Not many people use this path to go to the cliff because it's rocky. At least we don't have to worry about running into anyone. The cliff should be just ahead of us." Hyde pointed the flashlight down the path. He held out his hand to Licht and asked, "Are you sure you want to visit the cliff? We can go another night?"

"Why are you asking me something so stupid? I was the one who insisted we visit the cliff. Don't look down at me." Licht said but he took his hand. He was prideful and he wanted to appear brave despite how his stomach felt uneasy. After meeting Mahiru again, his past never felt so close yet far away at the same time. He needed to find who he was before Mahiru decided to send him back to Tokyo.

Hyde could see through his bravado easily but he didn't say a word. He lightly squeezed his hand and they continued to climb up the cliff. He tried to find a way to ease the tension around them and said, "The moon is beautiful but I love seeing its reflection in the water. One night, when I was a kid, I sneaked out here to see it. Even it doesn't trigger any of your memories, we can look forward to a pretty sight."

"I see the moon every night." He glanced up at the sky but he couldn't see the stars well behind the clouds. At least he had Hyde next to him and he was the one leading him to the cliff. They stepped out of the bushes and Licht looked towards the cliff. He could feel the ocean breeze and hear the waves as he neared the cliff. He found himself dragging his feet.

Licht almost screamed when he felt a hand on his shoulder. He realized that it was Hyde and stopped himself. Hyde pulled his black hood over his head and wrapped his arm around his shoulder. "It's cold. We can go home anytime you want. I can even carry you home if you want. Wouldn't that be romantic?"

"As if you're strong enough to carry me, Shit Rat." He rolled his eyes. Licht noticed the grin that appeared on Hyde's lips as he placed his hands on his hips. He gasped when Hyde swept him off his feet and over his shoulder. His cheeks brightened when he felt his hand on his leg. "Put me down! I will throw you off the cliff if you touch my— Pervert!"

"I wanted to show you how strong I am. Remember, I was the one who pulled you out of the water and carried you back to my house." At the reminder of that night, Licht stiffened. Hyde rubbed his lower back to comfort him. "Hey, I'll protect you if anything happens. As you can see, I'm pretty strong."

"What kind of luck do I have for you to end up as my guardian angel? You're more of a demon. You haven't put me down yet." Licht pulled up his shirt enough for him to pinch his skin. He became more irritated when he found that Hyde was more muscle than fat so he couldn't pinch him. He slammed his fist against his back and muttered, "Stupid Hedgehog."

"Yes, Angel Cakes?" He stopped and lowered Licht onto his feet again. "We're here."

Licht feet was on the ground but he felt safer when Hyde was holding him. He rubbed his arm and forced himself to look pass the cliff to the moon. There was a full moon that night and it would've been beautiful to anyone else. It appeared eerie to Licht. He looked down at its reflection that shimmered in the water. He suddenly wanted to throw up and he turned away from the cliff.

"Do you remember anything?" Hyde asked softly and leaned down to see him better. He brushed away his bangs from Licht's eyes and then cupped his face. "Take deep breaths."

"I didn't remember anything. It just this place feels…" Licht groaned softly and ran his hand through his hair briefly. He didn't know how to describe his conflicting emotions. He was attacked on the cliff so he knew it would be difficult for him but he wanted to try. "You said you found me late at night. Why would I come to this cliff so late?"

"Maybe you wanted to enjoy the view with someone. This is a popular spot for couples. We should ask Mahiru if you were close with anyone." Hyde suggested. "The moon is beautiful."

"I could see it clearly whenever I could play the piano." Licht placed his hands on the wooden fence. He drummed his fingers over the bar as if he was playing the instrument. He began to hum a light tune and he naturally turned towards the mansion. His fingers shook when he saw that the attic light was on. "I would play the piano in that room."

"I can see you playing late in the night." He had seen how happy playing the piano made him. Hyde wondered if he could find a concert hall that would let them borrow their piano. He was certain a song from an angel would be a nice distraction after a tense night. "I used to play in the garden. Lily would invite us to play with the family's son."

"I always felt bad for Rapunzel." Licht's voice was full of pity. Vague memories of playing in the attic came back to him. They were mostly lit by candle light and he couldn't remember anything clearly. "Rapunzel was trapped in a room with nothing to do but play a sad song. I wanted to help her."

"I didn't know Misono played the piano." Hyde said. Licht faced the moon again and leaned against his side. He closed his eyes when his stomach started to turn in time with the waves. Yet, it didn't help because he could hear the water rippling below. A warm hand fell onto his cheek and stroked his face tenderly. "Do you want to go back home?"

"Let's stay a little longer to see if anything comes back to me." Licht laid his hand over Hyde's. "Can you stay like this a little longer? I'm going to throw up if you let me go."

"Anything for you, Lichtan." He hummed to further drown out the sound of the ocean.

* * *

"Mahiru, you do know you look like an overprotective brother spying on his sibling's date, right? The only thing you need is a pair of binoculars." Kuro leaned on the wall and looked down at Mahiru. He had a tiny grin and the laughter in his red eyes made Mahiru blush. He tried to focus on the cliff and strained his eyes to see the two.

Kuro had to admit that Mahiru's protectiveness was a little amusing. They were in the attic and watching the pair through the window. From where they sat, they could see the cliff and if anyone else approached the two. But the only thing he could focus on was Kuro standing close to him. He could feel his breath brush across his hair. "How did you guess that they would go to the cliff tonight?"

"Licht doesn't have his memories but he's personality hasn't changed. He's stubborn and reckless. If you tell him something's too dangerous for him, he'll try it the first opportunity he could. At least your brother is there to take care of him." Mahiru rubbed his temple lightly. "I was hoping that Hyde would convince him to stay in your cabin though."

"They seem to be close. After spending so much time together, it's only natural. Hyde probably can't say no to anything Licht asks him at this point. He gets like that when he loves someone. My brother will probably go crazy if he's stuck in the house all day too." Kuro told him. "I know you're worried but it's safe. They need fresh air."

"Wait, you said Hyde loves him. Do you think that's true?" Mahiru turned the chair so he was facing Kuro. He tilted his face up at him and unconsciously grabbed the hem of his shirt. "Licht and I have our own lives miles away from here so we'll have to go back soon. It'll likely be hard for them once this is all over. I know I'll miss you, Kuro."

Mahiru whispered the last sentence. Their eyes met and he suddenly felt flustered. The attic was dimly lit but Kuro could still see a faint blush on his cheeks. He held his breath as he waited for Kuro to respond. They leaned towards each other slowly as Kuro asked, "What if I say I wanted you to stay?"

"Kuro, I—" They both jumped apart when they heard a loud slam. Kuro instinctively pulled Mahiru against his chest and wrapped his arms around him. He looked around the room but he didn't see anything that could've made the sound. As he loosened his hold around him, he could feel how stiff Mahiru was. He rubbed his back slightly.

"Are you okay?" He felt Mahiru's heart beating through his shirt.

"I was only scared a little. What made that sound?" He reassured him and patted his shoulder. He slipped out of his arms. After Mahiru checked that Licht was still safe before he went to search for the source of the sound. It didn't seem like anything was out of place. "Maybe the sound came from downstairs. I hope no one got hurt. Wait, the stairs!"

Mahiru ran to where the stairs were supposed to be. The door was shut and he realized the sound must've been from hatch closing. He wondered if someone had accidentally locked the attic without noticing that they were inside. He frantically knocked on the door and yelled, "Hello, is anyone there? Please, open the door. We're trapped inside."

"I don't think anyone will hear you, Mahiru. The door is thick. I'll text Lily and he'll open the door for us. Hopefully, he hasn't fallen asleep yet." Kuro knelt next to him. Then, he nodded towards the bed in the corner. "At least we have place to sleep while we wait for someone to find us. You take the bed and I'll find a comfy box to sleep on."

"I don't think either option is that good. We don't know the last time they changed the sheets on that bed. At least it's warm. It's big enough for two people so we should share it. Don't argue with me on this." Mahiru placed his finger over his lips. "I can't let you sleep on the dusty ground so just use the bed with me. We already sleep in the same room so a bed isn't too different."

"Troublesome," Kuro blushed at the thought of sharing a bed with Mahiru. In the end, he couldn't argue with him when he looked so worried. "My siblings would always complain about my restless sleeping so I might kick you in my sleep. Remember, you're the one that insisted I sleep next to you so don't be angry when you wake up."

"If it's a nightmare, it's okay. I'll just wake you up." Mahiru smiled in the moonlight. He walked to the bed and pulled off the blanket. He shook off the dust as best as he could. "Hopefully, Lily will come and rescue us soon enough. I don't know why someone would design this attic so it can only be opened from the outside. That's dangerous. There should be a way to open this door like a key or a latch."

"I left a note downstairs so the person that closed the door should've known that we were up here." Kuro ran his hand over the wood until his fingers caught on something cold. His brows furrowed as his eyes adjusted to the dim light. "Mahiru, there's a flashlight in the bookcase. Can you hand it to me? I think we can open this door."

"Is there a handle on the trap door? That seems like a tripping hazard considering the door is on the ground. If someone was sleeping up here, they could hurt themselves in the dark." Mahiru noted as he picked up the flashlight. He stood next to him and shined the light at Kuro's feet. "I don't see anything."

"I feel a keyhole." Kuro took out his ring of keys and shuffled through them. Each key was labelled but not one was for the attic. He stopped on the key he found in Licht's room. "Licht would play the piano in the attic at night so he won't keep people awake past midnight. Maybe this key is for the attic. He did say the key was for a door in the floor."

Mahiru held his breath as Kuro turned the key between his fingers. He was disappointed when the key didn't fit. He didn't want to give up though. "I think you're on the right track, Kuro. Maybe there's another door leading downstairs. We went through this attic thoroughly when we moved the heirloom downstairs. I didn't see another trapdoor in that time."

His eyes fell to the far corner of the room where the bed rested. It was the only space he didn't search. Mahiru gripped the bedpost and pulled on it with all of his strength. He felt Kuro behind him and they were able to move the bed a fair distance from the wall. He didn't wait before he hopped over the bed and pointed the flashlight at the ground.

"There's a door!" Mahiru didn't know if he should be happy or worried about the discovery. He swept off the dust until he found the keyhole.

"This must lead to the east wing and we're forbidden to enter there. If this key does open the door, can I convince you to just stay here and sleep? I don't want to go into that dusty place." Kuro said but he put the key into the hole. It turned with little resistance and a soft click rang through the attic.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know I haven't updated in a long time but I hope to get everything back on track.


	15. Chapter 15

"Be careful, Mahiru." Kuro said as he helped him down the stairs. The east wing was old and it hadn't been well maintained after it was closed. He was worried the wooden stairs would break beneath their feet and he held onto Mahiru's hand securely. When they stepped on the floor, dust was lifted into the air and Kuro coughed a little. Mahiru patted his back when he saw him cough.

Then, Mahiru shined the flashlight down the hall and walked forward. "Do you think we should find a light switch? More light will help our search but I'm worried that the other workers might find us. If Mr. Alicein discovers we were here, we can be fired. He was secretive of this place the last time we were here and he made us sign that form."

"Lily said they keep sensitive documents here but this place doesn't look like any different from the other wings of the manor. Well, it's certainly dustier. I don't know what Licht could find down here to make someone want to kill him." Kuro scanned the line of doors. "I guess it's time to play musical doors. Licht is your best friend so tell me which room he would go into first."

"I'm still trying to figure out why he would possibly want to come down here in the first place. He won't bother with anything if he doesn't care. Licht comes off as an impulsive person but he's very sharp." He wondered where Licht would've found the key to the east wing. "If he came down here, he must be looking for something specific."

"So, we're walking through this place blindly and without a clue. Can't deal." Kuro sighed. From the corner of his eyes, he saw a disheartened expression passed over Mahiru's face. He reached over and tousled his hair briefly. "It'll only be a matter of time before Licht gets his memory back so it'll be okay. For now, we just have to find anything that can help him."

"Thank you, Kuro." He smiled up at him. The only source of light they had was the moon and the flashlight. Yet, Kuro could see his soft smile clearly. Mahiru didn't seem to notice how flustered he made him and turned back to the hall. He aimed the flashlight at the door to their right. "We know that Licht usually plays the piano in the attic. Maybe he heard something and came down here to investigate."

"The only living thing down here is rats. I hope we don't run into any of them. If they were big enough to make a lot of noise, they must be huge." Kuro had to wonder if there were more than rats in the abandoned wing. He remembered the night he chased the thief and how he heard two pairs of footsteps. Another question that played on his mind was how Licht could have the key to the east wing. "Do you think he was going to meet someone here? Maybe the person who gave him the key?"

"Who would have the key to give to Licht in the first place?" Mahiru asked him but his stomach started to turn as he waited for his answer. Only someone who worked for the family would have the key. He hated the thought that the person had lured Licht to the east wing and attacked him. He did grow to care for everyone in the mansion.

"As far as I know, the Aliceins didn't give any of their employees the keys to this place." His answer confused Mahiru. "Neither I nor Lily were given the keys even though we have important jobs."

Kuro noticed the way Mahiru worried his lip and he could read his thoughts. "I don't like thinking that we know the person who did that to Licht either. They're our friends. For now, let's keep things simple and not drive ourselves crazy with what-ifs. The person attacked Licht at the cliff so there might be no connection to the key."

"Those what-ifs are hard to ignore when there's so many questions." Mahiru sighed and he found himself leaning towards Kuro a little. The dark hall was a little eerie to him but Kuro made him feel safe. "Let's explore this place for an hour and then we can go back to the attic. We'll describe what we saw to Licht and that might help him remember something."

"Do you think dust and cobwebs will spark any memories?"

Mahiru reached towards a doorknob to open the door but something made him pause. He shined the light over it and he said, "That's strange. It looks like the dust and spiderwebs here had been disturbed. You said that no one is allowed in here. Do you think this was caused by that time we chased the thief?"

That time was a blur in his memory because Mahiru didn't have time to process everything during the chase. He was more focused on Kuro because he thought the thief would hurt him. Mahiru rubbed his arm where he had been cut protecting him. It wasn't deep but Mahiru hated the thought of Kuro being the one hurt. They had grown close in their time together.

"It's hard to tell." Kuro opened the door and peered inside. It looked like an ordinary study and he walked to the desk. He turned on the lights and walked to the desk. There were a few books and pictures but nothing stood out to him. He picked up one of the framed pictures and wiped away the dust. Beside him, Mahiru flipped through the notebook and he found that they were filled with music sheets.

"This song doesn't have a title. Is it original?" Mahiru couldn't read music sheets so he couldn't recognize if it was a familiar song.

"Can I see that?" Kuro put down the photo and he took the music sheets from him. He read over the notes a few times. Slowly, he tapped his fingers on the desk as if he was playing a piano and hummed the notes. Mahiru had seen his friend do the same a million times but there was something about Kuro's voice that captivated him. " _Fur Elise_. The notes are similar but this looks like sheets for a different instrument."

"I never knew the Alicein practised music so much. Then again, there's a grand piano in the library and a smaller upright piano in the attic. They might even play another instrument too. Misono never mentioned he could play an instrument." Mahiru had to question why they would hire Licht as a pianist if they were already musicians.

"As far as I know, Misono doesn't play an instrument. I can't remember meeting a music teacher in my time here." Kuro placed the notebook back onto the table. "I doubt there's a secret in these music sheets that could make someone wanted to hurt Licht. We should keep looking. Do you want to look around this room a little more or check out the next one?"

"This study is very sparse." He said and glanced around the room. The walls were lined with aging bookshelves and there was only a few other furniture. Mahiru put down the notebook and he noticed the picture Kuro was looking at earlier. With the dust smudged away, he could see the people inside the photo. "Look, it's Misono and Lily when they were kids."

"That's not Lily." Kuro thought the blonde boy next to Misono looked familiar but he knew that it wasn't his brother. "He didn't have many friends when he was a kid from what I heard. Maybe it's one of his cousins or something like that."

Their conversation was interrupted by Kuro's phone ringing. Before he could answer it, the lights suddenly went out. He felt Mahiru grab his arm and cling to him. He didn't know if it was fear or instinct but sense of protectiveness washed over Kuro. He wrapped his arms around him and said, "The breaker probably went out. I know this place is a little tense but it's not haunted."

"Sorry for the overreaction." Mahiru laughed nervously but he didn't let Kuro go. "I'm just a curator so it's not often I have to creep around a place like this. The lights went out at the same your phone rang. It was like an omen in a horror movie. The atmosphere of this place is getting to me so we should head back. Who called you?"

"My brother, Hyde. He probably called to tell us that they got home safe. I knew you worry about Licht so I asked him to call once they reach the cottage. I'll call him back once we get back to our room." He told him. Even if it was something simple, it touched his heart that Kuro thought of him. Mahiru smiled and took his hand to lead him back to the attic.

He walked out the door and he was taken aback when he thought he saw a ghost. The person was a tall woman but he didn't think she was a part of the staff. She didn't wear a maid uniform either. Mahiru wondered why she was in the restricted area. He debated if he should follow her or return to the attic before they were discovered themselves.

"Do you know who that is, Kuro? Do you think that person is a thief?" Mahiru whispered.

"She's not creeping around like a thief. I'll trail her and you should go back to— We'll go together to see who she is." Kuro corrected himself when he saw the look Mahiru gave him. The last time he chased the thief, Mahiru had followed him and he would likely do the same this time. "We should be careful since we don't know if that person is armed."

They stepped out of the door and they followed the woman. Kuro watched her walk casually down the hall and it was clear that she knew the layout well. She ignored the decorative ornaments in the hall so he didn't think that she was a thief. Why was she in the east wing then?

The next hall they walked into was different from the rest of the wing. Mahiru had to note that the hall appeared much cleaner than the rest of the house. He stayed close to Kuro's side and strained his eyes to see the woman in the darkness. It was difficult to see her features or anything else about her. She walked into a dining room and there was food set at the table.

"I thought this part of the house was restricted. Do you think she's a squatter? If she's homeless, we should talk to her and hear her story. Maybe we can help her and get her a job with the Alicein." Mahiru suggested softly. He started to walk into the room but Kuro placed his hand on his arm. He wanted to be cautious because he had to question his conclusion.

"There could be more than one person. I doubt she would be able to steal a meal like that by herself. We don't know if they're dangerous or not. We should go get Dodo, just to be safe." He knew how kind Mahiru was so he was relieved when he didn't argue with him. Kuro squeezed his hand when he saw Mahiru look back to the woman with sympathy.

The door creaked as they backed away from it and that caught the attention of the woman. She stood and the knife in her hand glinted. She hurled the plate at the door and shards shattered around them. Kuro protected Mahiru by wrapping his arms around him. He pulled Mahiru away and ran down the hall while holding his hand securely. Her screech followed them and it was clear that she was violent.

Kuro doubted that they could outrun her through the attic because the door to the main building was locked. He ran towards the front door and he could hear something break behind them. He shoved open the door and he pulled Mahiru directly towards the house. They stopped at the door and Mahiru looked back to the east wing. "She's not chasing us anymore. Do you think she went back inside?"

"For now, we should report this to Lily. Explaining why we went into the east win will be troublesome." Kuro opened the door and ushered Mahiru into the house. He couldn't help but feel like someone was glaring daggers at his book. He looked over his shoulder but he couldn't see anyone. For now, he needed to keep Mahiru safe in the manor.

Kuro noticed how stiff Mahiru was as they walked. He doubted that Mahiru was in dangerous situations often so he comforted him. He wished he could say something to help him but he didn't know what to say. Adrenaline was still flowing through his body but Kuro helped him relax. The path to Lily's office was short but it felt longer with the silence.

He knocked on the door before he opened the door. Lily was sitting at his desk and speaking with Mikado but he welcomed with a smile. He noticed the frown Kuro had and he stood up. "Are you two okay? Mahiru, you look a little pale. Do you need me to call Johannes?"

"Actually, we need you to call DoDo." Kuro thought of what to tell his brother. "Mahiru and I were in the attic and we heard noise from the east wing. When we went to investigate, we saw a woman. She attacked us but I don't think she's too dangerous. We should investigate and find her to be safe though. I don't know how she got into the east wing."

"How did  _you_ two get into the east wing." Mikado stood sharply and the chair scraped against the wooden floor. He was a little confused by his accusatory voice. He thought he would be more concerned about the woman who broke into the house. "Every door to that part of the house has been locked. You two should know not to go into the east wing."

"Umm… We found the key and trap door earlier today." Mahiru lied and took out the key to show him. He didn't want Kuro to be punished for going into the east wing when he was the one who insisted they investigate the building. He didn't know if he should tell them about Licht though. "We meant to return it but then we heard someone below. I thought it could be the thief and I begged Kuro to help me."

"So, going into the east wing was your idea?" Mahiru nodded but he didn't expect Mikado's next words. "You're fired. I overlooked the time you went into the east wing to chase after that thief but I can't do that again. Please pack up your things and leave tomorrow morning. I will have a few contracts for you to sign before you leave though."

"What?" Mahiru and Kuro yelled at the same time. He was too shocked to say anything further but Kuro came to his defense. "You can't fire Mahiru. He was only thinking about everyone's safety. I was with him the entire time and he didn't break any of the other rules. The heirlooms still need to be appraised so you can't fire Mahiru like this. Lily, tell him this is ridiculous."

He looked between his brother and his boss. Lily bit his lip and held out his hand to Mahiru. "Please return the key to the library's study."

Mahiru knew that there was nothing he could say to change their minds. He was afraid that arguing any further would cause trouble for Kuro and cost him his job. It hurt that Lily didn't defend him but his job was over now. He came to the mansion for Licht's sake and he discovered that his friend was still alive. He should've been able to leave the mansion satisfied.

The only thing he felt was upset.

He placed the key in Lily's hands. Mahiru couldn't stand in the room much longer and ran outside.

* * *

"So, this is where you are." Kuro found Mahiru in the library later that night. It was a little past midnight but neither of them could sleep. He was sitting on the couch and looking at the pocket watch on his lap. His deft fingers tinkered with the latch on the watch's cover. When Kuro sat next to him on the couch, Mahiru said: "I thought I would be able to fix this before I left the manor."

"Even if it's still broken, Misono might be happy to have it back. You did say that it's the emotions behind the heirloom that's important. I can give it to him tomorrow." Kuro offered but Mahiru's sad expression didn't change. He wanted to comfort him but he didn't know what he should do. Hesitantly, he placed his hand on his brown hair and traced a path to his cheek. Mahiru looked up at him and Kuro opened his mouth to say something. In the end, silence stretched between them.

Mahiru took his hand and he lowered it to his lap. He continued to hold his hand in both of his though. "I wasn't able to do a lot of things I was planning to and now I have to leave. Well, I always knew this was a temporary job but… Dear Lord, it feels we had this conversation a few times already. Each time, it seemed far away but I have to leave tomorrow."

"I know you're disappointed we couldn't find who attacked Licht." Kuro sat back against the couch and tilted his head towards the piano. "Have you decided what you're going to do next? It'll be hard to explain everything to the police and his family. But Tokyo might be where you two are safest. You can always stay in my family's cottage until you book a plane home."

"Thank you for the offer, Kuro." He said but Mahiru couldn't help but feel a little disappointed. There was something else he wanted to hear from Kuro. Yet, he didn't know what it was himself. Mahiru took out his phone and glanced towards the piano. "Can I ask you for a favour? I would like to record you playing the piano and make it my ringtone. I want to have something to remember you."

"This library doesn't have the best acoustics but I can do that for you right now." He stood and they walked to the piano. Mahiru sat next to him on the piano bench. After he nodded to him, Kuro began to play Chopin's  _Nocturne_ for him. The sorrowful song was full of longing and the melody made Mahiru's heart ache. He leaned as close to Kuro as he dared.

The song eventually ended softly but neither moved away from the other. Mahiru turned off the recording and another sigh escaped him. He looked up at him and their eyes met. The emotions in his unique eyes echoed his own and drew them together. He placed his hand on Kuro's on the piano. His eyes drifted close as he felt Kuro's lips brush over his.

A soft note rang out as their fingers tangled together over the keys. Kuro's other hand cupped his cheek and tilted his head back to deepen the kiss. The world became a heated fog until the only thing he could focus on was Mahiru. His soft lips. His warm hands. His smooth voice. Kuro wanted to hold onto Mahiru and everything he came to adore about him.

Each time Kuro started to pull back, Mahiru would draw him back down for a longer kiss. He groaned and parted his lips for Kuro. A shiver ran through him when he felt his tongue. Mahiru wrapped his arms around his neck and whispered his name against his lips. "Kuro… Earlier, you said: 'What if I asked you to stay'. I'm asking you that now. Can you stay with me?"

In answer, Kuro kissed his brow. "I promise, I'll help you find who hurt Licht."

His words were reassuring but it wasn't the answer Mahiru wished to hear. He wanted Kuro to tell him that he returned his feelings. Mahiru prayed he loved him too.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Only a few more chapters to go~ I know I haven't updated these multichapter fanfics in a while but I was making a bunch of oneshots. I shift from large projects to smaller ones every few weeks to keep myself from burning out on one project.


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